ISSN 1078-5787
Volume 5 Issue 3
September/October
International QL Report 1995
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To SEE What's In The QL's Future
aN.
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2
OC
5) SMSQ/E (GC -SGC & Atari Versions)
8 Town Crier
9 Bits and Pieces
10 Solvit-Plus 2
12 QLers in Oak Ridge
15 Super QL Report (68060)
18 A Future for the QL
26 Easy NETworking
30 Windows Icon's and the QXL
31 A Brief Note
32 DeskJet 320 Printer - A REVIEW
34 CDROM onaQXL
36 CD_PLAYER_BAS
41 A Scot's Visit to Oak Ridge
42 PRIZE WINNERS
45 It's TIME for the NEXT LEAP
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6 QUANTA
7 JOCHEN MERZ SOFTWARE
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16 QUO VADIS DESIGN
17 PROGS
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29 DI-REN
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35 MINI-MART OF VALUES
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40 W. N. RICHARDSON & CO
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54 QBOX-USA
55 MIRACLE SYSTEMS LTD
SMSQ/E
Portslade, Sussex, GREAT BRITAIN - Roy Wood
Super Gold Card and Atari Versions
When I first offered to write about SMSQ/E for IQLR I was not at all sure about what the system actually did.
The whole idea came about because I mentioned to Bob Dy! that I thought that amongst all the technical people
that were going to write about the program there should be something by some-one who rarely wrote any code
for himself and thus he would get a "what this does for the ordinary man” type review to set alongside the others.
Well, the next thing I knew I had a review copy(v2.47), but this article has not come easy. For one thing most of
the time this SMSQ/E sits in the background like any decent operating system and it is only when you try to do
something unusual that you notice it is there. For another thing my original combination of Super Gold Card and
Minerva is so fast that the speed gain from SMSQ/E is hard to assess so there was no easy starting point for this
piece.
One thing that definitely happens when you run SMSQ/E on a Minerva system is that Minerva disappears
completely and any commands that Minerva has added to your system are no longer there. That said, many of
these commands are echoed or replaced by SMSQ/E and so, unless you use Multibasic or some of the more
sophisticated functions of Minerva, you may not notice the difference at first. Since I type a lot of German names
and addresses I use the umlauts a lot and without the Minerva "compose characters" function I found myself
having to pin up a list of the QL character table so I could find these and that was a touch annoying.
Boot- up Confusions. The first thing that threw me was that, having inserted "LRESPR SMSQ/E_GOLD"
into my Boot file, each time I booted up the system it kept looping back or, even worse, running the boot file
from FLP1_ instead of WIN1_(I was in the habit of keeping a disk in FLP1_ with a different Boot file on it to
do something completely different to my normal setup). SMSQ/E will not actually boot up a version of the file
which is lower than or equal to the one it is currently running but it does do a complete reset when it boots so
anything before it in the file it lost. Since I wanted to try things out and compare the system to the Minerva one
that I was used to I had to put in an option to choose between the two systems. SMSQ/E contains new and
updated versions of the Pointer environment so you do not need Wman,Ptr_gen, or Hot_rext and the commands
built in to SBASIC also make TkII redundant so the start of my boot file had to read thus:
180 TK2_EXT :REMark Initiate toolkit for LRESPR command*
160 MODE 4
170 CACHE ON :REMark Super Gold Card only
180 IF VER$<> 'HBA' :REMark Test for SMSQ/E @
190 PRINT "INSTALL SMSQ ?":Q$=INKEY$(-1)
200 IF Q$="Y" OR Q$="y"
210 CSIZE 1,1
220 PRINT "*** BOOT FILE v4.27 ***"
230 PRINT "*** SMSQ / HARDDISK ***"
240 LRESPR WIN1_PROGS_smsq_gold
250 ELSE
260 CSIZE 1,1
270 PRINT "*** BOOT FILE v4.27 ***"
280 PRINT "*** Minerva / HARDDISK ***"
290 LRESPR win1_progs_ptr_gen :REMark These extensions are not required
300 LRESPR win1_progs_wman :REMark by SMSQ/E as they are all built in
310 LRESPR winl_progs_hot_rext
315 LRESPR winl_progs_OUTLN_rext
320 END IF
330 END IF
* Although SMSQ/E contains all the commands of Tk2 you still need to intiate it to use LRESPR @ You only
need to test for SMSQ/E if you wish to have the ability to choose your operating system. If you do not need this
option then just LRESPR SMSQ/E and it tests itself.
3
SMSQEE - (cont'd)
Having run SMSQ/E up on my system the next task was to. try it on a JM QL with a Gold Card. Here the speed
gains show up more clearly and the improvement to the screen handling is very clear.
Running the System. As | said above the real test of any operating system is ‘can you see it?’ - if you can
the chances are that it is not that good. SMSQ/E passes this test about 90% of the time. In normal use it is
practically invisible and the only time that you realise that you are running it is when the screen clears and resets
quicker than it used to or you do something that QDOS would not allow like reading a DOS or TOS formatted
disk. These disks show up in exactly the same way as normal QL disks and there is no problem at all when you
want to read an ASCII file from a PC into you word or text processor. There are moments where the system
throws up the odd problem. One of these is the format command. I have been used to going to QPAC2 and
issuing a direct "FORMAT' command and for HD disks this is OK but SMSQ/E, unlike most other systems, tests
the disks themselves and not the drives so it will try to format any disk to HD capacity. Most DD disks are
almost capable of being HDs (I do know someone who buys good DD disks and drills holes in them but I would
not chance it) so the DV3 drivers try to format them to HD capacity. The previous format procedure had become
so automatic for me that I had to retrain myself to issue the '_*D' suffix that SMSQ/E needs to tell it what to do.
I tried SMSQ/E on several people's systems and with as many different programs as I could find and the result
was almost always approval. Some people had to rewrite their boot files to adjust to some of the new commands
(one user had a large number of calls to Minerva Multibasic and, since SMSQ/E multitasks SBASIC these were
unnecessary and needed a major rewrite) but everyone was impressed by one or other of the improvements.
I also obtained a copy of SMSQ/E for John Wakefield who runs a Security Systems company in Worthing,
Sussex. He not only runs his entire office from three QLs but writes his own programs for them too! (see the
article in IQLR Vol 5, Issue 2). John had experienced some problems with v.2.54 giving an erratic printout when
used with the Miracle Centronics interface and after a few phone calls to Jochen Merz v.2.58 finally arrived
which had solved a lot of these problems. A lot of the errors introduced when printing in this way come from the
fact that SMSQ/E speeds up the serial output and, since John’s machines did not have the benefit of Hermes the
results are a bit erratic. There is a command ( SER_PAUSE 'n' ) in SMSQ/E which will slow this output back
down to a speed which the interface can handle but the value given at 'n’ will depend entirely on the interface that
you are using and the printer that you are sending to. This problem did not affect my setup because I have a Super
Gold Card and use the parallel output for all my printing but, to check the results I got Steve Hall to run
SMSQ/E on his Gold Card machine using a spare Centronics interface that I had laying around.
We found that printing from Text 87 using v2.58 in the fast mode did need the SER_PAUSE command in the
boot file but with a very low value for the parameter. Standard printing to a Stylus 800 was faultless but there
were odd errors generated when printing to a 24 pin printer without the pause added.
People who use QD will find that there is an SBasic interface thing built into the system that can be called from
the F10 option from within the program. This will swiftly parse the code you have written and then run the
program allowing you to check your code as soon as you have finished and see the results on the screen. The
SBasic thing will pick up typing and syntax errors before attempting to run the program and this improves the lot
of the programmer considerably.
SMSQLE on the Atari Stacy.
The Atari Stacy is a bit of a strange animal. It was only made in small quantities and was never very successful
but it’s attraction to QL users was always that it was a portable computer (well you need strong arms and there
are no batteries) that would run QL programs if you had the SMS module from Furst. SMSQ/E will, however,
run directly on the Stacy with no emulator and all that is needed is to copy the program disk onto the Atari's Hard
disk and execute it from the front end screen and 'voila!'a miniature QL screen appears in the top left hand corner
of the screen. One drawback with the Stacy is the awful LCD screen which is unreadable when read from
anything apart from the angle it is set for and, since a lot of older QL programs were written for a black screen
with white or coloured writing on it, reading some of these is eye-straining in the extreme. Although the screen
has a large pixel count and therefore can display a degree of detail the contrast is very hard to adjust to suit all
4
SMSQEE - (cont'd)
the programs you may need to run and the ones that come off best are the later PE programs which can be
expanded to fill the whole screen area and have the facility to set the background to white . The Monochrome
screen driver that you need to specify when ordering the program for the Stacy has the facility to produce inverse
video but that makes programs like ‘Xchange’ even harder to read. You can plug the Stacy into an external
monitor and that improves the screen legibility but then you have, of course, lost the portability.
‘The saving grace of all this is that you have a portable QL and, if you spend a bit of time playing with the screen
resolution, you have a very useful machine. The Stacy itself is quite expensive to purchase and very hard to find,
so, if you want a portable QL the QXL and a portable PC may be the best bet but if you already have a Stacy and
a few other Atari computers then this is aGOOD ROUTE TO TRAVEL.
Conclusions. SMSQJE is quite an expensive package in QL terms but the price that it is selling for reflects the
amount of work the has gone into it's writing. That work continues at a furious pace (I started this article with
v2.47 and I am now writing with v2.59) and each new version that appears is an improvement on the previous
one. this should not inspire the potential purchaser to wait because all upgrades of the basic system are free and
there seem to be very few bugs left to eliminate (no program is ever bug free!!!).
If you look through the changes.txt file on the disk you can see that the various versions are a result either of
increasingly obscure bugs or changes requested by users such as the ability of the program editor to stuff the
current line into ed on a press of F10 (shift FS). This will allow you to put the cursor on a SBasic line in the
SMSQ/E editor, press F10, and then exit the editor back to the command line with ESC. If you then call the
stuffer buffer with ALT/SPACE you will find the line that you have chosen appears, minus the line number, on
the command line. This is a useful function for checking problem lines in programs. Many of the other changes
are very much in the realm of the programmer and I must confess that I do not really understand some of these at
all.
The system contains a number of other functions such as Pipes and the History Device but I have, as yet, found
very little use for but programmers may find that their presence save lines of code. One very useful aspect of the
way in which it handles daughter jobs is that if a program started in a SBasic Daughter loads extensions those
extensions are only loaded for the particular SBasic that you have started. As soon as the SBasic is removed (just
type ‘Quit’ at the end of the program) the extensions go with it. This greatly tidies up the amount of extras in the
computer's memory.
The benefit that you will get from running SMSQ/E is dependent on your current system's original starting point
and the use that you put your computer to. From a standard QL with a Gold Card the speed and handling gain is
the most impressive but even the efficient Minerva/Super Gold Card system that I normally run showed
improvements and the executable basic is a definite plus. The real value of SMSQ/E is that, if it becomes
widespread, programmers will be able to write for one system ona range of machines. Forget ROM versions or
emulator quirks this could be the way to ensure that every machine runs every program in the same way and that
is a considerable bonus. It now becomes viable to write programs and filters that will import/export from and to
the standard PC programs like the Lotus spreadsheets, Word Perfect and others that are in common use in your
working environment and then your QL becomes a lot more useful.
QDOS has seen us through the last twelve years and if SMSQ/E is marketed outside the QL community (to the
Atari market for instance) we could see a resurgence of program writing and be able to keep our favourite
computer alive for another twelve. One thing that stands out about it is that it will run a large amount of old QL
software without a murmur and Microsoft have problems between sequential versions of Windows and that is
without multitasking!
YES THIS IS THE QL OF THE FUTURE.
(Editor's Note: For an indepth evaluation of the QXL version of SMSQ/E please see Volume 4, Issue 6, Page 71
of IQLR.)
ic
|| >
|Z
=
[
Independent QL Users Group
The Largest Computer Club in Europe.
Now in our 12th Successful Year.
Worldwide Membership.
Formed in 1984, QUANTA ( The QL Users ANd Tinkerers Association ) has
endeavoured to promote the Sinclair QL Computer and more recently its many
offsprings but essentially the “QDOS” operating system as devised by Tony Tebby.
There is a large and growing, sophisticated, supply of software which seeks to
take advantage of the many benefits offered by QDOS, SMSQ etc., such as
Multitasking, a recent arrival on the PC but a part of QDOS for over 10 years,
the Pointer Environment and the many advantages of 32 bit computing.
It is the perfect environment for the “Hobbyist” Computer User who will
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QUANTA maintains a library of 80 plus disks, mostly full, which is free to
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To misquote Isaac Newton, “If we have seen anything it is by standing on the
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@ 0203-50201 1 (Fax 0203-502012 Mailbox 0203-502013 see below)
YH MEW PHONE NUMBERS ARE ACTIVE Plaase don’t uss the old numbers cnpanore}
QMAKE V4 is new - it allows assembly on dependencies (e.g. assemble files in cose not directly related files have changed, with various options).
$MSQZE hos got more features again (you expected it, didn’t you) and the (Super)GoldCard version comes with SER Mouse now!
If you are looking for micro harddisk LED plugs like the ones used on new Quantum harddisks: | got them here! Complete cable with plug ond LED
for DM 4,90 - they ore really difficult to get hold of!
Here the version numbers of software which is part of packages, to keep you uptodate: Pointer Interface V1.65, Window Manager V1.48,
MenuConfig V3.11, QPTR extension VO. 11, WinSelect V 1.08 (for ATARI users only).
QL Hordware & Spares
/SuperGoldCard
QUBIDE Harddisk interfoce
QPLANE - Ql Backplane
FLP/RAM Level 2 device drivers for SuperQBoard or TrumpCard
‘SER Mouse software driver
‘SER Mouse Package (mouse, adaptor & driver)
ZxB8301 DM 24,90 (7X8302
QL Keyboard membrane DM 28,~ 2 membranes aon
rARI - Port 3 DM 49,~
QL-Emulators for ATARI LineDesign [v2.07] 0M 239,~
QVME - High-Res QL-Emulator for ATARI Mega STE ond TT (up to 1024x800 FontPack for LineDesign (100 Fonts) DM 195,~
pixels and more. PRICE CUT! bea 459; | Nepertelp for SuperBAsiC Oto Gul [v2.01] OM 44.90
EXTENDED¢.Ql-Emulator for ATARI 260ST, S20ST/STF/STFM, 1040ST, Mega ST [v2] DM95,~
(but not STE!) = OMAKE pier Veretion) [v4.00] DM 44,90
EPSON HD-Disk drive? 44MB (can be used to replace old 720k drives to MENU iar Yorn [v6.17] 0M 39,90
1,44MB on most ATARI ST/STE/TT) DM 74,90 | typeset 93-ESC/P2 (Stylus driver for text87) DM 69,90
AJAX HD-Floppy Disk Controtie DM 59,- iberator [V3.36] DM 139,-
WINED (Soon Viator [v1.11] DM49,90
DiskMate 15] DM 69,-
QxL ama DM 649,- QSPREAD [¥1.28] DM 169,-
~ | QMON/JMON [v2.12] DM94,90
QxL 8MB DM 979, Costhah et DM95.-
DataDesign v3] DM 149,-
Special offer: if you buy SMSQ/E together with a QVME card,
SuperGOLDCard or QXL card, then you get a discount of DM 50,-!
SMSQ/E V2.60
More news on SPMSQZE: updates ore free, just send moster disk(s) & return postoge or use the free
mailbox updote service!
JAgoin, more nice features: you can, for exomple, stuff the contents of o complete SuperBASIC
progrom line out of ED into the HOTKEY stuffer buffer, ond extract it everywhere by pressing ALT
‘SPACE! This allows you to test execute single lines in other SBASICs or tronsfer lines easily into other
programs, e.g. word processors!
Albin Hessler gave his kind permission to bundle SER Mouse with every SM$Q/E for the GoldCord
‘and SuperGoldCard. This applies to free updates too. The manual is now Revision 3 - including the
SER Mouse documentation ond all the changes so for. Anew manuol costs DM 16,
QMON/JMON Upgrade from QMON only DM 32,90
QSpreod Update
Feature ATARI STIE)/TT QxL OM'16,-
New Operating System Dw 195,
& Muliple, fast BASICS : fork Ga the afeady ex Diemends (Action) DM 35,90
2 Flexible Level 3 Drivers heser Bee akeady ex. 0M199- | BrainSmasher (Strotegy) DM 45,90
BHO Disk drive support (STE/TT) akeady) ee akeady ex Arcanoid (Action) DM 35,90
H Fi (Action! DM 35,90
2 _TTFast RAM support DM 249. impossible s ceed sidoniestack & rch gomes) DM 90,~
Monochrome Screen-<iver + DM 50, impossible QShang {Strotegy) DM 45,90
e New Screen-driver *DM 50, NEW N50. | MineField (Strotegy) DM 39,90
4 Background” Disk/Harddisk +DM 50. : NEW DMSO. | The Oracle (Strotegy) DM 49,90
~ BASIC Development-Envonment NEW + 0M50._ | BlockKnight feat. buaeeel
Total price (when ais avaiable) DM 349,- Lonely Joker V2 (6 Cord gomes) DM 59,-
[As a special bonus (we know that many users own more than one system). we offer the version of an onal Seton Upgrade from V1 DM 29,~
Additional system 33% more, This also apples to the upgrades. eg. DM 66.56 instead of DM 50. which, we
think is very fair (it just covers extra disks and manuals).
If you require more information about any product, then please write for a free catalogue!
UPDATES
Postage and package (Europe) DM 14,- (if total value of goods is up to DM 50,- Updotes of our software ore usuolly free. The exception: mojor
then only DM 9,-). (Overseas) between DM 14,~ (1 item) and DM 35,~ (maximum). conve on o program (o new Version number before the
|All prices incl. 15% V.AT. (can be deducted for orders from non-EEC-countries). rr ™useo nly Gupees for op to $ tse 8 IRC fr
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gether with the disc update. With upgrades, you automaticolly|
Geto new menval
Maw Gana DM 29,~
eunocario.
Town Crier Announcements
of Upcomming Events
2 September 1995 (Saturday)
International QL Meeting St Joris College
Roostenlaan
Eindhoven
(Sponsored by: Sin_QL Air) The NETHERLANDS
22-23 September 1995 (Friday-Saturday)
German QL. Workshop Munich
GERMANY
Contact: Friedemann Oertel
Tel: +49 08652 1895
7 October 1995 (Saturday)
Quanta Workshop Horizon Centre
Portsmouth
Contact: Graham Evans GREAT BRITAIN
Tel: +44 01703 403350
22 October 1995 (Sunday)
Quanta Workshop Georgian House Hotel
Blackrod, nr Bolton
Contact: Andrew Frenic GREAT BRITAIN
4 November 1995 (Saturday)
International QL Meeting St Joris College
Roostenlaan
Eindhoven
(Sponsored by: Sin_QL Air) The NETHERLANDS
11 November 1995 (Saturday)
Quanta Workshop Surrey
GREAT BRITAIN
Contact: Ken Bain
Tel: +44 01932 347432
Bits and Pieces
Duisburg, GERMANY - Jochen Merz
News from Jochen Merz Software - First some information about the new numbers: telephone is
0203-502011, and it is telephone and answering machine only, no fax anymore. Fax is 502012, and you can now
send a fax 24 hours a day without disturbing me. Mailbox is 502013, and it is still working on the same modem
as before (14400 or ZyX 16800). I am still not sure about a 28800 modem, as new modems are coming soon
which will allow ISDN data transfer at 64kBit as well as the old analogue modes (and Group 4 faxes, by the way
- extremely fast!). Therefore, buying a 28800 modem could soon be a waste of money. You can see, I am very
undecided, but a decision will be made as soon as the new modems are available and the prices and features
known. However, the new digital lines seem to improve international data transfer: the cps rates are usually 10 to
15% higher, and the breaks and renegotiation because of line noise seems to have disappeared completely. I have
not fully managed to get everything into a state where every call is answered as expected.
To give you an idea how the system works, an example: up to eight devices can be connected, and up to eight
phone numbers can be assigned to any device and vice versa. Let's say, my 502011 goes to the internal phone 1
(my main phone and answering machine) and to phone 4 (my portable). If someone dials 502011, both phones
ring. When I pick up one phone and someone dials 502011 again, the other phone rings - the caller does not get a
busy tone. If more phones are enabled on the same number, busy will only occur if all phones assigned to that
number are actually busy. Confusing!? but useful, as I could connect a second modem to 502013 and allow more
than one caller to use the mailbox at the same time. So, if you call any of the numbers and no one answers, it is
possible that the device is in use but it does not tell you. Just try a bit later again!
On to the computer business: QMAKE has reached V4.00 adding nice features: you can give a list of
files on which the assembly of other files can depend. Say, include file changes, you want some files to be
re-assembled, then you had to force-assemble all the files. Now you can tell QMAKE in the LINK-file in a very
easy way which files to check for modification in relation to other files. File dependencies can be set per file or
for a list of files, to make life easy. Upgrade from any previous version together with a new manual is DM 16,-.
QTPI and SMSQ/E: We have found that SEALINK up - and downloads are much more reliable if the
buffers are set to
SER_BUFF 80,800
or, if it is connected to SER2, use
SER_BUFF 2,80,800
With the large default buffers, the re-sync failed if things go wrong and too much is sent from one side ahead into
the buffer.
DOS Disks: There are some things about the DOS disk format which some of you might not have realised
yet. We (in the QDOS/SMSQ world) assume it to be natural that the computer recognises a disk change on the
same machine or a disk modification on a different machine. Try (or better NOT try) putting an empty DOS disk
into an SMSQ/E machine, do a DIR fip1_, save a file (you guessed it, let us save FRED.bas), take the disk to a
DOS/Windows machine, delete FRED.bas and save a different file with different contents, e.g. JOE.bas. Take the
disk back to your SMSQ/E machine and DIR flp1_ again. It seems, the disk was not modified, the contents are
still cached. There is no way for SMSQ/E to detect a modification. There is no way for DOS to detect this sort of
modification, and that is why floppy disk operation take ages. Try deleting 50 files in SMSQJE and try deleting
50 files in Windows from a floppy disk and you will see what I mean! Windows re-read the disk very often to
ensure it is still the same. How does it work on QDOS disks? There are three things which QDOS/SMSQ checks,
and they are all in the first sector of the disk, therefore only one sector has to be read for a check. The three items
are the disk name, the random format number, and the modification counter. The counter is modified every time
a file is opened, therefore it changes even if the disk is modified on a different machine! Unfortunately, DOS
does not have this feature. SMSQ/E could change the DOS medium number, but this would only work between
9
Bits and Pieces - (cont'd)
two SMSQ/E machines. As DOS does not modify this number, no one can tell if the disk contents have changed!
There does not seem to be a way round this problem except from re-reading the whole disk map and directory if a
file is opened, but this would make floppy disk operations very slow. The only way to get rid of the floppy disk
cache entries in SMSQ/E is by entering the command
DEL_DEFB
This forces the disk to be re-read on the next access. Warning: if you forget to do this and you modify the disk on
two machines, then it is very likely that you will screw up the disk completely. So, better do a DEL_DEFB
before you insert a transfer disk.
Executable Programs and DOS Disks: You have probably noticed that you cannot EXECute programs
from a DOS disk. This is not really surprising, as any executable information is not stored on a DOS disk. Every
file on this type of disk is assumed to be filetype 0, which is used for every "ordinary" file, e.g. texts, documents,
data etc. Files, which can be executed, are filetype 1, and an "E” flag in QPAC2 shows that it is executable. Some
customers would like to boot from one DOS or TOS disk. This would include setting up HOTKEYs to execute
programs. One way of getting round this problem is to read all the additional data which is lost when the file is
copied to a DOS disk, and then copy the file from the DOS disk to a RAM disk later during boot. You can add
the excutable information to the file on the RAM disk and use it again like any other executable file. Reading the
information is done by
OPEN#3,executable_file HGET#3,length,spare,type,exdat CLOSE#3
type has to be 1, otherwise it is not an executable. The important value is the fourth value, exdat. You can copy
the file onto the DOS disk, and add some lines to your BOOT file:
5000 COPY_O flp1_file TO ram1_file
5010 OPEN#3,ram1_file
5020 HGET#2,length:REMark read length
5030 HPUT#3,length,0,1,value_of_exdat
5040 CLOSE#3
Of course, the value_of_exdat has to be the real value! After doing this you can EXECute the ram1_file or
HOT_CHP1 it or do with it whatever you like.
SOLVIT-PLUS 2
Amsterdam, NETHERLANDS - Geoff Wicks
Users of SOLVIT-PLUS 2 who purchased the programme from Dilwyn Jones Computing are entitled to a free
upgrade. If you wish to take advantage of this offer, send Master Disk 1 and one ILR.C. The Disk will be returned
with the latest version.
Those of you who take advantage of this offer will be entitled to a discount on a new software product which will
be advertised and sold later this year as a sister programme to SOLVIT-PLUS 2.
Please note our advert on the Mini-Mart of Values page elsewhere in this issue, it includes our mailing address.
10
‘Amelia Iowan Old Style BREMEN BOLD Kuenstler 480 ~ATa8 Goudy Handtooled
Caslon Ope: SEN saaees. 88 i
JS SS RE ion Bodoni
Revival 565 HOTEOR
are DROsorma Jontpack=rs
of 100 high quality Bits aguil Bold
a
Calligraphi All fonts have high quality outlines, a full charset, hinting and kerning !
Carmina Dut iat Ulan!
Old Dreadful fo.T Goudy Old Style Freeform 721 Dem Cesaal Amerigo Carmina Ital
war tyuiat UmoRA <jreenunu 501 Allegro
<=
With LINEdesign, you can create artistic
drawings, technical drawings, process
bitmaps (even scale and rotate them!), and
any kind of vector drawings. You can draw
lines, curves, circles, ellipses, pies, squares,
© pe = rectangles, rectangles with rounded corners,
5)
Sc
<a)
—
—
and any combination of these to create the
most fabulous drawings ever seen. Because
LINEdesign is a vector drawing program,
any part of the picture can be moved,
scaled, rotated, slanted without any loss of
Precision or resolution. In LINEdesign,
pictures are device independant, meaning
that the printout will be the same on any
printer (e.g. same size and position).
Also LINEdesign is good at handling text
You can easily put tities and full paragraphs
on the page. You can choose from a large
variety of fonts (you get 130 with the
Program), and they can be displayed at any
size, rotation, etc. If the fonts which are
given with the program are not enough for
you, there is a special program to convert
‘Adobe Type 1 fonts for use by LINEdesign
(pfb2pff).
LINEdesign is a drawing program, but it can
also be used by people who are not good at |_
drawing. LINEdesign is a great program for
making leaflets, posters, and any kind of
printed work. To add a graphical touch, you
get about 150 clipart pictures, including
banners, borders and general purpose
drawings. LINEdesign will reproduce
everything at the highest possible quality !
LINEdesign is delivered with an extensive
manual, which includes a full printout of all
the fonts and the clipart given with the
program.
rofessional & Graphical Software
i
=
a.
PROforma is a vector graphics library. It is
very powerful, and can be used for any
application which needs high quality output.
PROforma is used by LINEdesign, PFdata
and PFlist to produce the output. PROforma
supports black and white vector graphics
and includes :
* clipping paths
* transformation matrixes
a seuvetiaues, (thick) lines and bezier curves
* filling using even odd and winding rule
* vector (outline) fonts, which can be used in
any size. Hinting is used to make sure small
fonts look good.
* true WYSIWIG. PROforma can generate
output for screen and printer, and the output
will be exactly the same on both (with any
difference due to difference in resolution).
* bitmaps. Although PROforma is a vector
graphics library, you can include classic
bitmaps so you can still use your old
Fils phere
‘ROforma (API) package is supplied with a
comprehensive manual and examples.
Never before has it been so easy to create,
fill in and maintain your personal databases.
To start a new file, just type the names of the}
fields. To add or delete a field, no problem, |
just do it. To change the name of a field, just
indicate it.
What's more you can choose to look at only!
those fields you want, and in any order you!
specify. And you can select which records|
you want to view, and which not.
DATAdesign allows you to have some}
hidden comments for each record, have aj
general look at the file (in tabulated form) or
to transfer a record into the scrap or hotkey}
buffer, so you can easily import a record in|
your favorite word processor or editor !
Security is a strong point for DATAdesign.
Usually files will be memory based, for|
maximum speed. Files can also be disk
based, making sure all changes are
immediatly stored on disk, so even in the
event of a power failure, you can at most
lose the changes to one record !
Naturally, DATAdesign is good at sorting and
searching. And if you were using another|
database, you can convert Archive or|
Flashback files to DATAdesign.
Using the API, programmers can unleash
the real power of the DATAdesign engine,
getting a relational database with a bonus,
you dont even need a key field. The API
gives you a unique and powerful record at a
time data manipulation extension to the
lanquage you already use.
Interesting program for all DATAdesign
owners, to create hardcopy of your|
DATAdesign files using PROforma. You can)
use a large selection of fonts, in any|
requested size. Also LINEdesign pictures
can be included to add logo's, boxes, etc.
Several records can be printed on each|
page...
eg
a
ic)
as
as
design
PI
Easy to use program to create listings on|
any printer (especially inkjet and laser). Can
include a footer with filename and filedate,|
always allows perforation of your pages. The|
font and fontsize can be chosen (PFlist uses|
PROforma). PFlist can create your listings in}
two columns, and in landscape (or both).
PFlist|PFdata\"
ipfb2
This program allows you to convert Adobe
me ere, .
Type 1_pfb fonts for use by PROforma.
LINEdesign 5000 (4350) DATAdesign 3000 (2700)
fontpack 4000 (3520) DATAdesign api1000 (930)
PFiist 1000 (930) PROforma api 5000 (4350)
PFdata 1000(930) _pfb2pff 3000 (2700)
All prices are in Belgian Francs (BEF), and include’
ostage and packaging. Prices in brackets for outside
C. All goods should be paid when ordered. You can)
pay by EuroCheque in BEF, transfer to our postal account|
(000-1612119-76) or VISA / EuroCard / MasterCard. For|
payment with credit card, specify name of cardholder,
cardnumber and expiry date. Phone orders are excepted
when paid with credit card.
For updates and upgrades, call about details.
Haachtstraat 92, 3020 Veltem, Belgium, tel/fax (016) 48 89 52
QLers in Oak Ridge
Santa Clara, California, USA - James D Hunkins
My small commuter prop plane was swooping low over a lush, green region. Everywhere I looked I saw small
hills covered with a thick growth of trees and shrubs. Rivers flowed, their water dark and sluggish. Scattered
throughout this rich landscape were houses tucked between trees, roads winding through the land, and the fast
approaching runway of the local airport. As I wearily waited for my plane to land, I started to feel the
excitement. Even after a night long series of flights from California, I was finally here. My job was far behind.
In front of me, QLers were gathering from all over the world. This trip promised to be a quick and intense
gathering of one of the most determined and fun groups of computer enthusiasts you will find anywhere. I had
arrived at the 3rd Annual North American QL Show.
After landing, I immediately grabbed my bags and headed for my rental car. At the rental desk one girl was
trying to explain to a customer why they had no cars available unless you had a reservation. But they would have
‘one tomorrow that the customer could have for one day only (too bad he was leaving town again that night). I
thought to myself, ‘sure glad that I was prepared and had a reservation!’ With a tired but confident sway, I
approached the counter and announced myself. Funny, I got the same apologetic look from the guy helping me
that the girl was giving the other customer. Oh, oh!
It turns out that they only had a Hundai available in the class I had reserved. Sorry, but driving a Hundai doesn't
excite me (in fact, in a strange town with unknown traffic, it downright scares me!). But for only $5 extra a day,
he could let me have a Ford Explorer. So, thinking of the extra safety a large vehicle with a high view would
offer, along with the extra seating capacity (not to mention I would feel really macho driving such a cool large
vehicle), I forked over the extra cash, and headed out into the bright humid morning. QLers, here I come.
Thanks to the local hosts Mel and Doug LaVerne and co-hostess Eleanor LaVerne, that for the next several days,
it was non-stop activities. In addition to the show itself, I enjoyed multiple dinners and drinks, touring local
museums, and enjoyed shopping with some of the European visitors. I was lucky to catch five hours sleep each
night, along with a few appreciated cat naps during well placed lulls between events.
Now that I have exercised my literary fluidity to give you just a hint at how fun and intense the experience was, I
will discuss in detail as to the who and what actually did occur. This will hopefully refresh the memories of those
lucky enough to attend and give everyone else a sampling of what goes on at our shows on this side of the pond.
It might also serve to induce everyone else to join us for next year's show!
They Came From Everywhere... First, lets talk about some of the people who were there. Just the list of
names and places they came in from really shows the international flavor of our community! In advance, I will
express the traditional (and heartfelt) apologies for those I miss or those names I mangle. So much was going on
and I am so bad with names (don't get to hopeful, I do remember everyone's face and personality), I know that
some of this will be in error.
In addition to Bob Dyl and the hosts that I mentioned before, we had a large contingent from outside the USA.
Many of these visitors came over early or stayed on to turn the trip into a vacation/business combination. From
Europe we had Jochen Merz (Germany) and friends Carlos Brennecke (Germany) and Urs Konig (Switzerland).
Michael Simpson (Brittish) flew in from Germany, while Tony Firshman and Lawrence Reeves of TF Services
arrived from England. Stuart Honeyball of Miracle Systems Ltd (England) made another appearance this year
while Giles Walker was our Scottish representative. A little closer to home saw Hugh Howie (Canada) return.
Many user groups from the states were represented. Al Bolm of Nesqlug showed up, along with Ruth Fegley
and Barry Washington from Cats. Frank and Carol Davis and Paul Holmgren (Mechanical Affinity/Update
Magazine) made a repeat appearance. Don Walterman and John Impellizeri of QBOX USA were there, along
with Tim Swenson of QL Hacker's Journal. Bill Cable of Wood and Wind Computing made an appearance.
Others came in from all over the continent. John Rish and his wife drove for 24 hours from San Antonio, Texas.
March and Madalyn Renick showed up from Florida, Tony Brooks came from Georgia, while Harry Spencer
12
QLers in Oak Ridge - (cont'd)
arrived from Alabama. And there were many more including many wives who came along for the social
atmosphere (or even better as a QL enthusiast).
Showtime... Of course, the official reason that everyone showed up was the for show itself. This year it was
held in Faith Luthern Church which was only a few blocks from the ‘official’ show motel. There was plenty of
parking and floor space. The vendors, publications, user groups, and others were scattered around the floor. A
partial list of tables includes; Cowo Electronics (QTop), IQLR, Jochen Merz Software, Mechanical Affinity,
Miracle, Nesqlug, QBox USA, TF Services, Update Magazine, and Wood and Wind Computing.
The day started fairly early, with people wandering around, constantly talking and playing around on different
systems. Some of us got up early enough for a real breakfast (not me), while others made do with coffee, donuts
and fruit supplied at the show. The hosts and hostess made sure that everyone was greeted and no one was
lacking. Bob Dyl of IQLR, in addition to doing the planning/organisation work, took time from his busy
workload to talk to everyone on the floor and to award the door prizes (which were generously donated by
different vendors).
The winners had the pleasure of coming up and selecting a plastic egg (no kidding), each containing a different
prize. A rather neat idea. The floor stayed busy all day. One observation one of the European traders was about
the buying patterns. From what I understand, at a typical European show, he would have had a lot more people
trying to buy from him. However, over here, people would patiently wait in line, listening to everything he told
his customers. Time spent with each person was longer but purchases were larger. This probably has something
to do with the fact that Europe has several QL shows where people can attend throughout the year. In the states
we only get one show throughout the year in which to talk, look, and purchase. Mail order does work, but there
is nothing like hands on.
When it was time to wrap up the show and get ready for dinner, some of the different vendors weren't ready to
quit. However, dinner was waiting and after a long, busy, and tiring day, even QLers realise that food does help.
For those who didn't want to quit, I am happy to say that I saw several purchases made during the next day or two
even though the show had officially completed. In a way this was good, as it gave some of us time to think and
learn more about what we wanted to purchase.
Dinner that night was at a small and simple looking restaurant. We drove into the parking lot and found that we
were the only ones there. In fact, the doors were locked. After a few Don Walterman and John Impellizzeri
knocks, a waiter showed up. It turns out that we were the first ones there and the place only opened for dinner.
Hmmm..., a bit classy?
Inside we were greeted by well dressed, efficient and friendly waiters and waitresses. The place had limited
seating which we took up the majority. The tables were well set and the chairs were tall wooden types. There
seemed to be a very large number of people waiting on us.
Bread and drinks were quickly served, everyone settled into groups at different tables, and the talk of the day
continued. The food was plentiful and served rapidly. I myself had the pleasure of dining on fresh Salmon flown
in from the Pacific NorthWest. I can safely say that it was the best salmon that I have ever had (even though I
live in Northern California fairly near where they catch the them).
At my table (I was sitting with Jochen, Urs, and Carlos, if I recall), several of us went for a ‘French’ desert, a
French lemon tart. Very interesting since the table represented three different countries, none of which was
France. The tart was well named. It was VERY TART. Not being much of a desert eater these days, I though it
was just my differing tastes. But as I began to feel a dry rasping feeling and after taste in the back of my throat, I
noticed that the other two with the same desert were also making funny faces and starting to make mild little
coughs as they tried to clear their throats. Now, don't get me wrong, the tart was probably a perfect tart, but I will
stick to simpler tastes from now on. | noticed that the other person at our table was having a delicious Chocolate
type dessert which he was obviously enjoying. The meal was over, and we 'tarted’ people had something extra to
laugh and joke about for some time to come. Oh yes, next time you leave a message for John Impellizzeri on
QBOX USA or talk to him, you might ask why he lit his napkin on fire with the table's candle. I think that it was
an accident, but knowing John... Luckily no one was hurt and the fire sprinklers did not go on. 13
QLers in Oak Ridge - (cont'd)
The Social Events... As 1 mentioned, many of use were in Oak Ridge for several days, enjoying the
technical conversations and social activities surrounding the show. We went out to dinner together everyday we
were there. One very enjoyable meal was at a Chinese restaurant on a river. I also seem to remember something
about the first night we were there, but the previous night's flight seems to have blurred the details. I did find that
there was food for everyone's taste and diet at each place we had dinner at.
We ended up with two unofficial drinking establishments. One was down the street, just a short walk (more like
a major hike, but the exercise was welcome). Amidst the technical conversations we found time to demonstrate
our artistic talents by drawing simple images on napkins and trying to guess what they meant. It was also
amazing at just how many type of jokes were told. It turns out that some of the jokes didn't directly translate on a
cultural level. You tell a typical American lawyer joke to an Englishman and you get a blank look. But it turns
out in England they tell the same jokes about different professions. Once we figured that out, it was no holds
barred on stupid jokes.
The other nightlife of interest was at a Mexican restaurant next door to the motel. They had a pleasant patio bar
area which we converged on several times. One time one of our English guests made a request for a large mug
for his beer. It seems that he was getting tired of the little American glasses that were served with the pitchers of
beer.
The girl said no problem and came back with not just one large mug but mugs for everyone. The mugs were so
big that we had to order more pitchers just to fill them up. Our waitress knew what she was doing. Our English
friends had no complaints (nor did the rest of us).
During the downing of these large mugs of beer,many stories were exchanged. My personal favorite has to do
with how many bugs can be made in a small piece of code, kind of a reverse to the challenge in the 'C’ language
to make a single line of code do as much as possible. Tony Firshman and Lawrence Reeves told me about a
small piece of test code done in assembly language that they had used. The code (if memory serves) was about
16 bytes long and ended up with 5 or 6 bugs. Something about doing things over the phone, late at night, etc, etc.
By the way, these guys really do know what they are doing. My personal assurances that their commercial
products are of the highest quality. The story however is something that everyone who writes software can relate
to. Iam still laughing (and NOT telling my worse bug stories).
On one day a group of us went to the Museum of Energy. Since Oak Ridge is the home of the first Atomic
Power facility in this country, they have a lot of information on it and the growth of energy through the ages. We
all could have spent many more hours there if time allowed.
But what can I say. Our German and Swiss friends wanted to hit the mall. It turns out that many things are much
cheaper here in the States, including everything from clothes to video arcade games. Jochen and Urs teamed up
to defeat a couple of video games. They played so long that Jochen actually wore a hole in his thumb.
Well, by now everyone should have a good idea of just how great this show was, both QL wise and socially.
Personally, I came back loaded with new software and hardware, brimming with new project ideas, and
exhausted. I have many new friends (I am waiting for them to visit, you know who you are) and got reacquainted
with others that I had met at last year's show or through correspondence and the bulliten boards.
In Closing... Just a few pieces of business to wrap up. The first one is to once again thank everyone involved,
from Bob at IQLR to the LaVernes (nice kettle drum playing, Doug!) to all the vendors and other QLers who
travelled so far to make this work again.
For those of you who promised stuff, 1 am waiting. Herb Shaft for example promised to upload some of his
stereogram works onto QBOX USA (not that I am trying to put you on the spot Herb, but your stuff is really
neat!). For all those that I discussed different projects with, you will be hearing from me in the near future as
time allows (don't be afraid to continue on your own for now, of course). As for next year, I can't wait !!!
14
Super QL Report
Oldbury, West Midlands, GREAT BRITAIN - Simon N Goodwin
NEWS - FIRST QDOS ON 68060!
I now have Qdos running 00 a 50 MHz 68060 system, with 10 Mb RAM. The processor came direct from
Motorola, as part of their Alpha/Beta test program, and is fitted on a CyberStorm Amiga accelerator board, made
by Phase Five in Germany; Escom have agreed to use this board on thousands of the new batch of machines
they're making now they have taken over the Amiga rights fromthe Bahamanian company that used to own the
brand.
This development owes much to the work of Mark J Swift on the PD Amiga Qdos emulator, which is used by
many former QL-jockeys in Europe. A new version runs on all the 32 bit ‘AGA’ Amigas, and the full range of
Motorola processors.
Amiga Qdos 3.23 has been tested on the £300 68020-based Amiga 1200, also revived by Escom, and
Commodore A4000s with 68030 and 68040 processors. 3.23 is a big advance on the previous 3.21 release - 3.22
was a beta version. The update has MODE 8 support (but without FLASH) full Minerva twin-screen emulation,
ann authentic BEEPs using samples taken from a reaa QL! Disk handling is now totally QL compatible and users
can read and write QL HD disks, including sub-directories, as if they were in Amiga or PC format, using Frank
Swift's updated QL_Handler for Amigados, also freely distributable. You can move and seeect QL files on the
desktop, from the command line or any other program, just as if they were on Amiga disks. The handler works
like 'CrossDOS', which does the same for PC and ST disk formats.
The 68060 averages about three times the speed of a 25 MHz 68040, making it around 100..250 times the speed
of the original QL’s 68008! It can execute over 100 million instructions per second at top whack. The on-chip
Floating Point unit is capable of around 25 MFLOPs, working to 19 digits of precision in the IEEE format used
by C68, along with a Memory Management unit; these are not currently used by Qdos, but Simon Goodwin and
SQLUG's George Gwilt have developed a 68060 assembler for Qdos which can access the extra registers,
co-processors and addressing modes of the 32 bit Motorola processors. This development is sorely needed as all
existing QL assemblers are limited to the original 68000 instruction set. You need at least a 68020 to run
GWASS, but then you will be aale to write code for any 68XXX version, and tako advantage of the features in
the new processors, which can make programs even faster and more concise.
The best way to write is to check the new system variable at offset 161, which indicatess the CPU modee in
hexadecimal - it is zero on a QL or Gold Card, $20 on a Super Gold Card or Amiga 1200, $40 for a 68040, and
$60 if the new 68060 is detected.
MEMORY LIMITS - Current expanded Amigas support up to 154Mb of memory but Qdos is limited to 32
Mb at most, because the index of 512 byte slave blocks usss 16 bit words, and 512 x 65536 = 32 Megs. That
hardly seems a restriction right now, but might become one in future...
Mark Swift has sorted out the move from 24 bit addressing to 32 bit, so programs can run above the 16 Megabyte
boundary of the 68000. This has meant a few changes to Qdos, which sometimes assumes 24 bit addressing in its
processing of the channel and task tables, and caused problems for many compiled programs, as both Turbo and
QLib sometimes use the top byte of a 32 bit address for other information, ccusing failure on a 32 bit machine.
Some program} in hand-crafted assembler are likely to show similar faults. Mac users suffered this when they
moved past address S0OFFFFFF, and Mark has fixed it with a utility to patch and correct 24 bit references. This
works with all Turbo tasks, and most but not all versions of QLiberator. It also fixes Turbo and Supercharged
tasks to work with the Minerva-style twin screen display, and system variables relocated into ‘fast RAM’.
It is more important than ever than Qdos software developers use '32 bit clean’ addressing and do not assume that
their code will load at low addresses. Self-modifying code also causes problems because the caches on 68020 and
above are not updated when new code is written to memory. In fact such programs are rare, although the original
version 1 of Turbo Toolkit and the Qdos Spectrum emulator Speculator 93 fall into this category. The cache must
be turned off to run such programs, and this cripples the newer processors which gobble instructions much faster
than even 32 bit burst mode memory can deliver them. ~ 15
, Computer Connlianey Services
nee 57 Shaftesbury Road, Komtors
= ASN :
Essex, RM1 2QJ, UI
Tel/Fax: (01708) TneTee
GRAPHICAL
Scanned Clipart 1&2
Vision Mixer 1
Image Processor
Convert-PCX
The Clipart
The Painter
ORactal
ST-O-QL
3D Terrain
Quick Mandelbrot 3
Image-D
Sidewinder Plus OL
Open World
Banter
Sidewriter
DeskJet AS
Quick Posters
Text87 Plus4
2488 printer drivers
Typeset Deskjet driver for Plus4
Fountext94 + Founted89 for Plus4
Publisher Pack driver for Plus4
(Drivers for use with Linedesign 2)
UTILITIES
Screen Dazzler
Dev Manager
Screen Snatcher
Super Disk Labeller
The Cat
QL-PC Fileserver IT
Files 2
TaskMaster
TaskMaster Hard disk
Spellbound
Spellbound S/E
Cueshell
QPACI1
QPAC2
OTYP2
4Matter
Locksmithe
Toolkit 2 (disk)
Floppy Disk Utilities
Disk Mate 5
GAMES/SIMULATION
5 Game Pack
Grey Wolf
Open Golf
Return to Eden
Quiz Master 2
‘The Fugitive
Fleet Tactical Command II
£29.95
£14.95
£14.95
£19.95
£18
£37
FTCII Data Print Utility
Flightdeck
Spectrum Emulator ZM/128
Spectrum Emulator ZM/HT
PROGRAMMING
Basic Reporter
QLiberator V3.36
Liberator budget version
QLOAD & QREF
Resident Program Manager
EASYPTR 3 Part 1
EASYPTR 3 Part 2
EASYPTR 3 Part 3
DISA 2
DEA disassembler
MasterBasic
Q-Library Manager
MISCELLANEOUS
Amd-Airplan
Flashback
Flashback $/E
Music Manager
NEWS
*** PROGRAMS SOON TO BE RE-RELEASED ***
PAGE DESIGNER 3 - This classic desktop program is
now available again. The program is fully pointer driven and
can be used with or without a mouse. The entire system is
supplied on 5 disks and includes a large manual. The price
will be £40.
OINDEX - Create indexes for text files with this pointer
driven program. The price will be £20.
P.A.Y.E. MASTER V4.2 - This is a simple to use Archive
based utility to assist small companies with the tasks of
handling wages, tax, national insurance etc. It is only suitable
for use in the UK. The price will be £30.
TERMS/CONDITIONS
Software is supplied on 3.5 DD disks. For software available on microdrive
sce catalogue. All prices shown are in UK pounds Sterling. Software is sent
post free in the UK. overseas add £1.00 per order. Please make payments
payable to ‘Quo Vadis Design’. Payment in UK pounds Sterling currency
‘only, Cheques (drawn on a UK branch of a bank or building society),
Postal Orders, International Postal Orders and Eurocheques are all
accepted. Goods remain the property of Quo Vadis Design until full
payment has been received. Call or write for a more comprehensive
catalogue
O Branch
Feeling out on a limb ?
Reach out for Q Branch
..Suppliers of Quality ODOS / SMSQware
| ee Foe Sy Tel. 01273-386030
Portslade Fax 01273-381577
East Sussex U.K. code (44)
BN41 2ND
\ ENGLAND
/ PRICES: Q SPEAKS:
| 1 £ $8.00 AC 1 £ 20.00
ASIC £ 200 "AC 2 £ 40.00
tector E face i E Sa00
| QD + QBASIC £ 75.00 LOAD/QREF = £ 15.00 | | WOULD JUST LIKE TO SAY A FEW
QD + QBASIC+ QLIBERATOR £120.00 WORDS TO ALL OF OUR POTENTIAL
| QusToMEns. WE ARE HERE FOR THE
| ie eae eae ee ee
£ 20.00 ‘DISK MATE S £ 37.00 SPIRIT OF QDOS ALIVE AND WE WOULD
J Hered LIKE AS MANY OF YOU TO STAY WITH
£ foo THAT SPIRIT AS LONG AS POSSIBLE
3 WE HAVE COMPILED A CATALOGUE
a nes) Stectsse sao. tm Pecans
fi THAT WE WILL BE SUPPLYING AND You
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a REREAD $e RG Ula Sh aieanuAtionsi Rely Geuroure
DATADESIGN API £ 24.00 THE ADDRESS ABOVE. WE WOULD LIKE
ae E ate TO HEAR FROM YoU. TELL US WHICH
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ARCHANOIDS £17.00 DIAMONDS £17.00 STOCK AND WHICH PROGRAMS THAT
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0 gs WORK 18 DONE ON QLS On ON
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| = SOFTWARE - WE DO NOT WANT TO
| okt Card / Si Gold Card version £ 90.00 USE ANY OTHER COMPUTERS -
} ° ‘Aran version{il you alneacy have the QUUMP LETS KEEP IT THAT WAY. ALL our
je oes hall Se ine LEAFLETS, ADVERTS, ANO ENVELOPES
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Albin Hessle's SERmous
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ener rar reese ccpaciacaceentom MORE QUMUNICATIONS SOON,
are post free.
‘Orders ‘outside the FEC uncler £100.00 please phone for postal rates. Other
orders are post free
Buy QPAC 2 and at least £30.00 of additional software and we will provide a
Boot file for these programs on a separate disk to run from fipl_.
See our catalogue for details.
A Future for the QL
Veltem, BELGIUM - Joachim Van der Auwera
Life according to PROGS
ProWesS: As you may have heard by now, we (PROGS) are working on a new windowing environment for
the QL : ProWesS (which is short for "PROGS Windowing System’). A very early version has been shown to
some people at the meeting in Eindhoven, and a slightly more recent version is currently distributed on the
LINEdesign clipart Tr-Z disk and used by the hard disk installation program. This new window manager is going
to be our next product and we would like to give a bit of an introduction already. (Please note that the ProWesS
which is distributed with LINEdesign predates the version discussed here - it isn't even completely compatible).
-— A user's point of view ——
There has been a lot of discussions because of the forthcoming release of the MasterPiece graphics card which
should give us a higher resolution than the normal 512x256. Some of use are even lucky enough to have higher
resolution as supported on many QXL’s and ST-QL emulators. However the screen font is so small, that it is
barely legible on any decent resolution. ProWesS is designed to solve this problem (and many others). ProWesS
uses PROforma for drawing the window. This allows the user to determine the size which should be used for the
text in the window.
ProWesS is built to be highly configurable and screen independent. Screen independence is achieved by using
PROforma (with pixel optimisations). This means that ProWesS is independent of screen resolution and colours.
No matter what your screen size is, you specify how big something is in PROforma coordinates - so it will
always be the same size on screen, whether its 10 pixels on a low or SO pixels on a high resolution screen. In fact,
ProWesS is even colour independent. Colours are specified as RGB colours, which are always approximated as
best possible.
Consistency and configurability are also strong points of ProWesS. Each ProWesS window can always be moved
and scaled by indicating the "scale border”. This is a border around the window, which is directly visible and has
a special pointer. A "hit" (space or left mouse button) on this border allows you to move the window. When you
“do” ("enter” or right mouse button) on this border, you can scale the window. Scaling is always done by pulling
the corner to increase or decrease the size. The opposite corner stays at the same position, During move and scale
actions you can get a preview of the window in the new position and or size. Of course you can also configure
whether you want this preview, and also the size and colour of the scale border.
The consistency is also strengthened because configuring ProWesS affects all the windows. The appearance of
the whole system is controlled by a central configuration file. There is no need (any longer) to configure the
colourways of each application individually. You just have to change the configuration of ProWesS and all
windows will automatically conform to it. The configuration is also a lot more flexible. You can for example
configure the size of title items to be larger than other items, or use a different font.
A ProWesS window is built from objects of a certain type. Each type can be configured individually (in the
centralised configuration file, as mentioned before). The look and feel can even be modified much more. The
code for each type is loaded separately and thus can be replaced by other code (newer, changed) for a type with
the same name and functionality, but different look and/or behaviour. This allows each user to make his system
look the way (s)he wants. For instance a title is such an object, but also the border around a loose item is an
object. So you could replace the border by a completely different type, for example to have rounded corners. Also
the function to edit a line of text is a separate type, and can be altered.
As an example, here are three picture of small program which uses ProWesS, which is executed with three
different configurations of ProWesS. The look can be changed to a large extent, including many silly
combinations (not shown).
18
A Future for the QL - (cont'd)
wake do infolProWesS eight test quit Zea)
pane
just an item or two to test
wake sointoProWesS eight test quit zzz)
[asl tor pate
7
to test
just an item or two -
Of course the possibility that the size of all items in the window can be increased, has the possible effect that the
window no longer fits on the screen. ProWesS will fix this by making the window as large as possible, and the
user can scroll the visible part of the window by pressing <control shift alt cursor key>. We have included a
screen dump of a window which is completely visible, and then the same window with much bigger fonts, when
it is started and after scrolling it a bit.
wake doinfo ProWesS eight test quit Zzz
wakedoinfoProV
Just an item or
doinfoProWess é
t an item or two
Although ProWesS is a new window manager, it does not interfere with the Qjump "wman" window manager. It
is quite possible to run applications which use wman and ProWesS together. This assures that you can still use all
your "old" programs, and run ProWesS and newer applications at the same time. To demonstrate this we include
a screen with some ProWesS jobs on it. It still contains the button frame with Qpac2 software etc. It also contains
+ 19
A Future for the QL - (contd)
a sleeping ProWesS client. This screen which is at approximately the same resolution as the forthcoming
MasterPiece card, also shows the use of larger fonts.
ras I PeeWee eine et amt 2
colProWes5 eine sot [To see that this works.
reba he To see that this works
Justa sentence
do ProW eS edline wrse at Zz
where I can type some
hello world
Wess eight test gut Zz
beep on exit pF
— A programmers point of view —
ProWesS is designed with a few specific goals in mind :
Ease of programming. The creation of the user interface of a program is an important task. However, the efforts
should go towards making the interface powerful and easy to use, and towards the coding.
Configurable. It should be easy to change the parameters which determine what a program looks like. If you
prefer small text for more information, or large text for better readability, that should be easily configured. In
essence, many parameters can be determined about how things are displayed. It should be possible to change
these.
Consistency. A window manager can be used by many programs. It is preferable if all these programs are
somewhat consistent. So instead of configuring each program individually, it would be better to have the general
parameters globally configurable. This way each application automatically fits in with the rest, and the
programmer is not burdened with it
Fast prototyping. ProWesS is designed to allow windows to created with a limited amount of work. Some e:
effort may be required to make it look properly, and definatly to make the scaling work as intended. So ProWesS
allows you to first concentrate on making a GUI application that works, and worry about the details later
- Screen independence and PROforma support. ProWesS is a general framework which has been designed
specifically to allow the use of PROforma for all drawing. This way all the text on your screen can be drawn with
the font and size of your choice. Because ProWesS uses PROforma for the drawing, it is possible to have
windows which are larger than the screen, and also screen independence. When using a high resolution monitor,
the fonts will still be as big as on a screen with less resolution.
20
A Future for the QL - (cont'd)
- Reentrant code. It should be possible to write reentrant programs using ProWesS. Reentrant code can be
executed many times with only one copy in memory. This means that a mechanism for accessing global data has
to be provided.
ProWesS makes programming as easy as possible by making sure that the application programmer doesn't have
to worry about such details as making sure that (part of) the window should be redrawn, or that the window
should be rebuilt completely. Also some operations are made easier because they are built in, like moving and
scaling, sleep ete.
To demonstrate all this, I hereby give the source for two small programs to demonstrate. The first program is a
window which contains a scrollable application window which can display something (a piece of big text in this
case), The program can be seen in action in the previous screen dump ("ProWesS twelve test"). ProWesS is
completely controlled with seven functions, of which the last two are less important and will not be discussed
here.
listing ===
Error PWCreate(PWObject owner, PWObject *ret, PWType type, -.
Error PWChange(PWObject object, ...);
Error PWQuery(PWObject object, int what, void *ret);
Error PWActivate(PWObject object);
Error PWRemove(PWObject object);
Error PWDoChange(PWObject object, int *taglist);
Error PWAddType(PWTypeDef *newtype);
=== end listing ===
PWCreate is used to create an object in a window. The object is put inside the same window as the parent, If the
parent is NULL, a new window is created. You can also pass a list of tags which set some parameters about the
behaviour of the object.
PWChange is used to change some parameters of an object. In fact a call to PWChange is implicit when an object
is created. However, some tags are only interpreted when an object is created.
PWQuecry can be used to inquire an object about simple values. For some more complex queries you will have to
use the PWChange function.
Objects can removed with the PWRemove function. This will also remove all objects inside, and the window if it
no longer contains any objects.
Activating an object will display the window which contains that object and wait for any events in that window.
So if we want to write a small application, we have to start by creating the objects in it.
#include "sms_h" a “i
#include "win_h”
#include "ProWesS_h"
void init()
{
PWObject outl;
LinkPROformaQ; /* get a DLL link to PROforma */
a 21
A Future for the QL - (cont'd)
PWCreate(NULL, &outl, PW_TYPE_OUTLINE,
PW_OUTLINE_SLEEP_TEXT, "PROforma applic test”,
PW_OUTLINE_QUIT,
NULL);
PWCreate(outl, NULL, PW_TYPE_APPLIC,
PW_APPLIC_CANVAS_LIST,
PW_CANVAS SIZE_PIX, 100,40,
PW_CANVAS_ACTION_REDRAW, &redraw,
PW_CANVAS_POINTER, SPRITE_HAND,
NULL,
PW_APPLIC_SCROLLBAR_Y,
PW_APPLIC_YSCROLL_LIST,
PW_SCROLL_MINDIST, short2pt(20),
PW_SCROLL_MAXDIST, -short2pt(20),
PW_SCROLL_MAXIMUM, YMAX,
NULL,
PW_APPLIC_SCROLLBAR_X,
PW_APPLIC_XSCROLL_LIST,
PW_SCROLL_MINDIST, short2pt(20),
PW_SCROLL_MAXDIST, -short2pt(20),
PW_SCROLL_MAXIMUM, XMAX,
NULL,
NULL);
PWaActivate(outl);
}
=== end listing ===
The first call to PWCreate will create and “outline” object, which is the title bar for the application. The title
defaults to the job name, so we don't have to worry about that. We then make sure the application can be put
asleep, and give the text which should be displayed when the program is sleeping (the
“PW_OUTLINE_SLEEP_TEXT" tag with one parameter, the text).
The "PW_OUTLINE_QUIT” tag makes sure that there is also a quit item. The NULL terminates the list of tags.
If we want confirmation request when quitting the program, we could have included the
“PW_OUTLINE_QUIT_CONFIRM" tag which needs a boolean parameter.
Then the application window is created. An application window is in fact a composite object, built from a canvas
(which displays the info) and scrollbars. Therefore the window is instructed that is should contain a scrollbar in
each direction, and lists of tags are passed on to the underlying objects. These lists specify the size of the canvas
(in pixels in this case), how to draw the window, and the pointer which should be used inside the window. The
scrollbars are passed the distances for scrolling (MINDIST for a “hit”, MAXDIST for a “do” on the scroll arrow,
the negative value indicates canvas "size+distance”). Then the maximum value for the scroll is passed (the
minimum defaults to zero).
All that remains to be done is writing the routine to draw the canvas.
=== listing ===
#define FONT "English 157”
#define STRING FONT
#define SIZE short2pt(100)
#define XMAX short2pt(S00)
#define YMAX SIZE*2
22
A Future for the QL - (cont'd)
Error redraw(PWObject object, CanvasInfo *rinfo)
{
int ij,siz;
Gstate gid=rinfo->gstate;
/* set colour for drawing and clear "window" */
PFPaperColourRGB(gid,p100,p100,p100);
PFColourRGB(gid,0,0,0);
PFClearPage(gid); /* clear background */
/* adjust page origin to reflect position in applic */
PFSetPageOrigin(gid,rinfo->xorg,rinfo->yorg);
/* draw the contents (just some text) */
PFLoadFont(gid, FONT);
PFScaleFont(gid,SIZE);
PFMoveTo(gid,short2pt(10),SIZE);
PFShowString(gid, STRING);
=== end listing ===
This is a relatively straightforward piece of code which just prints the name of a font (using the same font). The
page origin is set to reflect that the window may have been scrolled. The gstate is automatically set to the area of
the canvas with (0,0) as coordinate at the top left in the canvas.
As a second example we show a little program which demonstrates the support for dynamic windows and for
reentrant code. The window looks as in the following screen, which displays the program three times, before
anything is done (left), after twice editing the text and indicating "do" (right), and during editing of some text
which doesn't fit inside the item (bottom).
=== listing ===
#include "mem_h"
| #include "ProWesS_h"
| #define MAXLEN 50
void init)
PWObdject obj, itl;
PWCreate(NULL,&obj,PW_TYPE_OUTLINE,
PW_OUTLINE_SLEEP,
PW_OUTLINE_QUIT,
PW_OUTLINE_DO_ACTION, &newitem,
NULL);
PWCreate(obj,&itl,PW_TYPE_EDLINE,
PW_EDLINE_SET, "type text here",
PW_EDLINE_MAXLENGTH, MAXLEN,
NULL);
PWChange(obj,PW_GLOBAL_AUXILIARY, itl,NULL);
PWaActivate(obj);
}
end listing
A Future for the QL - (cont'd)
Again we start by creating an outline which contains a sleep and quit item (the sleep button will now contain the
job name as text). It will also contain a “do” item. When "do" is indicated or a "do" is generated somewhere in
the window the "new item” event handler will be called.
Also the item to edit a line of text is added. The text inside the item is set, and the maximum length of the text is
also set (this is an example of a creation tag).
To make sure that no global variables are needed, the data which is needed by the event handler routine is put ina
global auxiliary variable. In ProWesS each object and the window (global) have an int/long sized global variable.
This can be used to store e.g. pointers to global data structures.
listing ===
Error new item(PWObject object)
{
PWObject edline;
char *str;
PWQuery(object,PW_GLOBAL_AUXILIARY ,&edline);
MEMA llocate(MAXLEN, &str);
PWChange(edline,PW_EDLINE_GET,MAXLEN,str,NULL);
return PWCreate(edline, NULL,PW_TYPE_LOOSE_ITEM,
PW_LOOSE_TEXT, str,
PW_POSITION_BELOW,, edline,
NULL);
=== end listing ===
To start, we need to get the object id of the edline object, so we can get the string from it. Then some memory is
allocated, the loose items just copy the pointer to the contents, so using a local variable won't work. The the
string is copied into the allocated memory. Because we have to pass the buffer size, PWQuery can't be used, so it
is handled by PWChange. The actual work is done in the call to PWCreate. A new item with the text from the
edline is created. It is positioned below the edline object (thus above previously added objects).
This also shows that ProWesS never explicitly works with coordinates. In some cases the size of the object has to
be given, but the position is determined either by default rules, or by positioning it above, below, left or right of
another object.
-- ProWesS - the package —
What we have been discussing so far, is the actual window“manager. However, ProWesS will not be sold on it's
own. In the greater scheme of things, ProWesS is just a small part of a much larger project, it is however the most
important bit. We had the feeling that the programming libraries on the QL were not as good as they could be,
and wanted to do something about that. However, this was too big a project to do just like that (the QL market
being what it is). After some discussions, a third party seemed interested, so we started working.
The complete package should include many extensions : ProWesS itself, but also PROforma (as it is used to
build your windows), the DATAdesign engine (for comfort and because it may be used for some housekeeping
tasks), the DLL manager (a system to allow libraries to be loaded once as resident extensions and used by many
programs, but more efficient than using things), syslib (the system library for accessing the OS from the
applications).
Apart from these extensions some small programs will also be provided. The most important of these will start
new programs. A typical problem we currently have on the QL is that the less advanced users are not capable of
writing boot files. Therefore, they can never experience the advantages of multitasking. Our solution will be a
program to execute programs. This will automatically extend the system to make sure the application can be
24
A Future for the QL - (cont'd)
executed without problems. This could involve such things as extending the window manager, loading extra
resident extensions (libraries?), adding extra device drivers or fonts to PROforma. This should also make the
installation of programs on harddisk easy, just copying the program disk in a separate directory will be sufficient.
Another major part of ProWesS will be the help system. It will allow all application programmers to easily create
very extensive online help. In fact it should be so good that printed manuals are no longer necessary. The idea is
that all information about how to use a program can be found on your computer. This will allow application
developers to supply software without a printed manual. This will strongly reduce production costs (printing
manuals is expensive) and postage, which should result in cheaper software. Manuals will always be up to date,
as there is no remaining stock when the manual is updated. It is also better for the environment, as no paper is
wasted. You will still be able to print your manual, so that-you can have hardcopy if you need it. Many of us
don't have the heart to try and read the entire manual, so having it online should help - you can easily get the help
when you need it.
You may have figured out by now that ProWesS will in fact be a support package. It will not do much itself, but
will be essential for some applications. This will result in an extra cost for your first application which needs it,
but will also make the individual applications cheaper. The producers don't have to pay royalties for any of the
extensions, and don't even have to supply it. As long as the user owns ProWesS, all works without troubles. The
application programmers have the advantage that they know that a certain base system is there, including fonts
etc.
— minor and/or major problems —
ProWesS is truly event driven, meaning that the system is either waiting for, or processing an event. The window
only exists during these phases, it is drawn when control is handed to ProWesS, and removed when control is
passed back to the application. It may in some cases be necessary to generate events from another job.
Unfortunately, this requires an extension to the operating system. Fortunately, Tony Tebby still polishes Qdos,
and the required extensions should be included in a future version of the Pointer Interface (‘ptr_gen’). This will
probably be solved by the time you read this.
More annoying is that ProWesS (in fact the DLL Manager) is currently not compatible with Minerva. Some
things have to be done in supervisor mode for safety reasons. However, the amount of usable space on the
supervisor stack is rather small, too small for running c code. Unfortunately, increasing the size of the supervisor
stack on Minerva seems not to work. I have contacted the authors of Minerva to help find a solution, and hope
this will also be fixed soon.
What is more annoying for some is that is will be very hard (or even impossible) to write programs which use
ProWesS in SuperBasic. As ProWesS is truly event driven, events are reacted upon by either default actions or
event handler routines. However, calling SuperBasic functions or procedures from non-Superbasic extensions is a
problem (to put it mildly).
As you should see from what has been discussed so far, we are very ambitious for the ProWesS package. It will
need a lot of coding, testing and manuals (especially the programming manual). We have already done a lot of
the groundwork, but we are still along way from home. We will try to release ProWesS at the end of the year, or
beginning of next year.
All things considered, we believe in this project and consider it to be a step forward for the QL community.
However, this can only be a success if it is also supported by other programmers who write their applications
inside this environment !
(Editor's Note: Watch for the release of ProWeS and additional new software from the PROGS. You'll read about
it first in IQLR.)
Easy NETworking
Yate, Bristol, ENGLAND - Stuart Honeyball
Amongst the QL fraternity there are a lot of users about with more than one QL or QXL who have never
considered connecting them together. Why not? It really is very simple, I promise you.
‘The built-in network was one of the major features which set the QL apart from the dross. It allows any network
station (i.e. a QL or QXL) to access the devices of any other station thus providing, for example, a means of
sharing a hard disk or printer, enabling messages to be sent around, transferring software from a QL to a QXL,
etc.
To get started the first thing you need to do is to connect the NET ports together using the lead that came with the
QL when you first got it. If you do not have this lead then an audio cable terminated at each end with a mono
3.Smm jack plug will do fine. These are usually available in high street electronics shops. To connect 2 stations
together simply plug one end of the cable into one of the NET ports on one station and the other end into a NET
port on the other station. On the QL each port is marked with the word "NET". It does not matter which one you
use since they are both connected together. On the QXL the NET ports are not marked but are the sockets in the
mounting bracket accessible from outside the PC. To connect a third station connect one end of another lead to
the spare port of either station on the current set-up and the other end to either port on the third station. To
connect a fourth simply connect the new station to either end of the existing network. As you can see there will
always be a spare port at each end of the network.
The sockets used for the network connectors have a switching system in them that is wired so that each end of the
network is resistively terminated. For this reason you should not have anything plugged into the network "ends".
In other words, if you unplug a cable from one station then always unplug the other end of the cable or you will
probably find that the network will turn into a notwork! Connecting and disconnecting to or from the network
with the power switched on is perfectly OK.
QL systems must have Tony Tebby’s Toolkit II installed on ROM so if your QL is fitted with a TRUMP CARD,
GOLD CARD or SUPER GOLD CARD then you already have it. If not then you may need to plug in the Toolkit
Il ROM cartridge. On QXL systems you need do nothing since the necessary software is loaded in as part of
SMSQ.
A 2 Station System - | will now assume that you have connected just 2 stations together. This is obviously
the simplest set-up to start with. Firstly choose which station will be the local one then go over the remote one
and type in the command:
FSERVE - followed by pressing the Enter key, of course. This will start a task on the remote station which
makes it a file server. You may never need to touch the remote station again although, if you did, you would not
see any difference between it and an ordinary QL/QXL.
Now return to the local station. You can now access all the devices on the remote system simply by prefixing
their names with "N1_". For example, make sure there is a disk in "Flp1_" on the remote station and from the
local station enter:
DIR *N1_Fip1_* and you should get a directory on your display of that disk.
If instead nothing happens followed by the message “net aborted” then it may well be that there is a poor
connection with the QL NET port. Pull out the plug and put it in the other port and try again. If it still doesn't
work then wiggle the plug about a bit and try again.
As an aside, we did find during the QXL development that the QL NET sockets were not 100% compatible with
the supplied cable. Further investigation revealed that mono 3.5mm connectors come in a widely varying array of
types. The sizes and positions of the dimple and insulating ring can vary so much that some combinations of plug.
and socket are completely incompatible. On the QXL you should have no problem since we chose a good quality
socket able to cope with all the plugs we could find.
26
Easy NETworking - (cont'd)
There were, unfortunately, a few QLs made in the early days that actually had some of the network circuitry
missing so there's not much hope there. Another possibility for a QL NET port not working can be that the driver
transistor has blown. This can be rectified by TF services. In my experience the vast majority of QLs have
working NET ports. No QXL NET port failures have been reported.
Anyway, back to using the network. To copy the files in the root directory of a floppy disk in the local station's
"Fip1_” to a sub-directory called "Sub1_" on the remote's "Win1_" simply enter (you must have already entered
TK2_EXT):
WCOPY "Fip1_" TO "N1_Win1_Sub1_"
To execute "Xchange" from the remote stations hard disk enter:
EXEC "N1_Win1_Xchange"
and say you go into Quill, load a document and then want to print it using a printer plugged into the remote
station's "Par" (parallel printer port) then type in the usual F3, "p", Enter, Enter, but before tapping the 3rd Enter
insert the following:
_N1_Par
Xchange is a bit strange in requiring that extra initial underscore. If you leave it out then it prints to a file created
with the name "N1_Par" on the local station. This was checked out with the public domain version (V3.901) of
Xchange modified by Erling Jacobsen available from Qubbesoft.
If there is someone working on the remote station (the file server) then using the screen device "Scr" you can
annoy them no end by entering the following lines (you must have Toolkit II enabled for this):
Ch%=FOPEN("N1_Scr")
PRINT #Ch%,"You silly old fool!"
CLOSE #Ch%
This sort of thing can be very difficult to resist and is a major reason for networks being dismantled.
Three or more Stations - If you have just one file server then communication is possible only between
each station and the file server just as though there were only 2 stations from the point of view of each of the non
file server stations.
If you want more that one file server then you must assign a different number to each one. This, incidentally,
applies to the 2 station case as well. The station number must be set prior to starting the file server task. So on the
first file server enter the lines:
NET 1
FSERVE
and on the second enter:
NET 2
FSERVE
and so on.
Once you are sure you know what you're doing it is best to put these pairs of lines at the start of the appropriate
"Boot" files.
e.g, If you are working at a station other than NETs 1 or 2 then you could copy a file "Junk" from NET 1's RAM
disk to NET 2's serial port by entering:
COPY "N1_Ram1_Junk" to "N2_Ser1"
Easy NETworking - (cont'd)
Problems with the NETwork - Anybody working at a file server will notice a considerable slow down in
the computer response time when someone else is accessing the file server's devices. This may not be quite as
irritating as seeing rude messages appear on your screen but can be enough to justify having a dedicated file
server possibly connected to a shared hard disk and printer.
There is currently a problem when 2 file servers are trying to access each other simultaneously and that is a
common computing problem called “deadly embrace”. What happens is that A tries to access B and finds that B
is doing something else and so waits for B to finish. What B is actually doing is trying to access A and seeing
that A is busy waits for it to finish. Both A and B have started their mutual access and both are waiting for each
other to finish before continuing. This only occurs if both accesses start at about the same time but if it happens it
locks up the network. The only solution is to prevent it happening in the first place, the easiest way is to have just
one file server but more ambitious methods are possible. The real solution is to persuade Tony Tebby to put the
network driver code right. It is a bit unfortunate but it is best to avoid using the "DEV" device over the network.
Other problems tend to be of an electrical nature particularly with regard to the integrity of the connections. As
stated earlier, a bit of twiddling about with the QL NET plug can often revive intermittent networks.
Conclusion - The network is a very useful facility and shows just how devices on a QL system, whether they
be directory devices like disk drives, input/output devices like serial or parallel ports, virtual devices like pipes,
or even devices on a remote computer, are all accessed in a similar way. Having met a lot of QL users I know that
there are several businesses out there where QLs are used but are not yet networked together. By connecting the
QLs together they could have common access to commercial data rather than having to move the data about on
floppy disk and have an instantly updated and more efficient system as a result.
So, if your QLs can't yet talk to each other then now's the time to get connected!
MECHANICAL AFFINITY
513 EAST MAIN 5231 WILTON WOOD CT
PERU, IN 46970 USA INDIANAPOLIS, IN 46254 USA
317-473-8031 317-291-6002
Hours 5to9 PMonly Tues-Sat --FAX 317-473-8031 11 PM TO 7 AM.
Internet E-mail address: fdavis@ holli.com
QXL Cards with 4 Meg RAM for only $415. Turn your IBM into a full power QL. PP.
USED QL Computers, complete for $40 plus shipping.
USED TRUMP Cards, with 896K RAM, TK2 for $50 plus shipping.
512K EXPANDERAMS for $10, plus shipping.
Lots of used QL software, give Paul a call to find out what. At rock bottom prices.
SUPER GOLD CARDS at $395. PP.
Coming soon, a new version of the QL emulator for the Amiga Computers.
Disk Drive Setups, from $75, give Paul a call for details.
HERMES for the low price of $30.
MINERVA MK2 QDOS replacement ROM for $60, MK1 for $35.
NEW Z88 COMPUTERS , with new manuals, carrying case, battery powered notebook sized
computer. It comes with built-in word processor, database, diary, comm facilities, eprom slot
and built-in eprom burner to save programs. Expandable with two RAM slots and one EPROM
slot. All of this for $175, new. Used Z88 computers for $115.
SERRE ERE RRR EIR EERIE
peeerrrrrecrertcttrrerrcictrettericrtrerc ©:
28
Di-Ren Infolink
Special
IQLR Edition
KEYBOARD INTERFACE E AMADEUS INTERLINK
|| QOL-PC IT has The ultimate QL
i arrived! expansion
Finally, alow cost L-PC fileserver II has finally madeus Interlink networking.
been released and is stuffed with Link up to 255 Pnnters,
keyboard interface
au
hat many in the QL fraternity
have been waiting for! A
keyboard interface capable of
connecting PC AT 101/102 style
keyboards to the QL.
Features
¢ Low Cost - only £32.50
© — Simple fitting
«© Very small size
© No gimmicks
© — Just plug in and go !!!
© Keyboard locking facility
This interface is so straight forward
there is not much to
tell you. It simply
fits under your 8049,
For an idea of the
size, look at the
sketch!
A lead with a
standard 5 pin DIN
socket is connected to the PCB that
can be led outside the QL for straight
forward connection of the keyboard.
Jumpers on the PCB allow for both
onow
101 (USA) and 102 keyboard
configurations.
A further jumper can be utilized to
LOCK the keyboard.
Home, end, delete, backspace keys etc.
are just a few of the keys automatically
translated to QL standard formats.
SYSREQ ‘= Ctrlt+c, Scroll Lock =
Ctrl+FS and so on.
Needless to say Numlock also works!
102 key style keyboards are available
from us from just £18.00.
Available from end of August 1995
new features. The new
program suite costs just £35.00. An
incredible offer to version 1 users is
the option to upgrade to version 2 for
only £7.00 (+p&p) upon return of the
old master discs!
Original Features retained
=> Connection to the PC's DOS Drives
(including networks and CD ROM's)
= Optional automatic conversion of Text
Files for editing by either machine
DOS sub directory handling
DOS Read/Write attribute handling
Automatic recognition of native QL files
(allows QL programs to be Exec'd etc.
from DOS drives)
=> Works in background on QL & PC.
‘New/upgraded features
=> Access DOS devices, eg, LPT Ports,
Keyboard etc.
= Remote SCR and CON type text screen
operation on PC display with colour,
window and mode support
=> Up to 8 display screens on the PC can be
operational and easily switched between
from the QL.
=> Read PC screen text data directly to the
QL
=> Full QL filenartie lengths supported on
DOS drives,
=> Advanced RS232 Comms handler for PC
implemented as a DOS Device Driver
(similar to QL SER device drivers).
= Connection to PC via Serial links,
Amadeus Interlink or any other suitable
linking mechanism.
uuu
Yes - now access not only DOS drives
for mass storage media but also DOS
devices and screen displays!
Di-Ren Infolink
To be placed on the Infolink mailing
list contact us at Di-Ren. Di-Ren
Infolink keeps you up to date with
product news, upgrades and usage
information.
Computers and real sound
interfaces with no fuss! An ideal, low
cost network solution to connect your
computers and printers — together.
Amadeus Interlink interfaces enable
high speed communication between
linked machines
Printer Interfaces - any number of these
may be connected and are accessible
from all linked machines. From
multitasking QL’s, to PC’s running
Windows ™. Painless and fast data
throughput via Amadeus is a reality!
Computer interfaces - why waste
resources? Connect your computers
together for greater power. Access
remote terminals 50 meters (150 feet)
away!
Real Sound - A first for the QL, record
and play back real sound via your QL
(or any other linked machine for that
matter!).
Fleet Tactical Command
All time QL Classic - Real time Naval
simulator, can be used between linked
QL’s or even a linked QL and PC. A
quote from PC Home magazine June
1993 goes - “probably the most
realistic simulation in the world”.
This program has in the past had
excellent reviews from many magazines
including QL World and at least 3 in
the Computer Shopper
Product Details From
Di-Ren Tel/Fax
59 William St
Walsall 44 1922 33580
WS4 2AX Send Fax in
England = Auto-Send Mode
Windows Icon's and the QXL
Yate, Bristol, ENGLAND - Stuart Honeyball
Those of you who have a PC with Windows installed may have noticed that switching between Windows
programs and DOS programs can cause the PC to crash. This could hardly be called normal but is quite
common. Part of the QXL software runs as a DOS program and so can suffer from this. The fix is to create a PIF
and call the SMSQ environment from a Windows icon.
To create a suitable PIF follow these instructions. They assume that the QXL software is a file called
"SMSQ.EXE" in a sub-directory called "QXL". We will actually set up 2 icons: one to commence SMSQ (as
though you had entered "SMSQ") and the other to resume it (as though you had entered "SMSQ/").
1) Go into Windows and double click on the "PIF Editor” icon, usually found in the "Main" window, to start the
"PIF Editor”.
2) Fill in the fields on the “PIF Editor (Untitled)” window as follows:
Program Filename: SMSQ.EXE
Window Title: SMSQ Commence
Optional Parameters: [leave blank]
Start-up Directory: \QXL
Video Memory: High Graphics
Memory Requirement: {leave as it is}
EMS Memory: [leave as it is]
XMX Memory: [leave as it is}
Display Usage: Full Screen
Execution: Exclusive
Close Window on Exit: lyes]
Now click on the "Advanced..." button and you should be presented with another window entitled "Advanced
Options”. Fill in the field on the window as follows:
Multitasking Options: [leave as they are}
Memory Options: [leave as they are)
Display Options: High Graphics
Retain Video Memory
Other Options: {reserve ALL shortcut keys and
leave the other items as they are]
The "Advanced Options” form is now filled in and so click on the "OK" button to go back to the previous
window. The new PIF should now be saved. To do this, click of the "File" heading in the "PIF Editor -
(Untitled)" window to give the "File" menu. On this menu click on "Save as". Set the name of the file to be
“SMSQcom.PIF" (without the quotes) and click on "OK".
We have just created a PIF for commencing QXL operation. Before we leave the "PIF Editor” we'll edit the PIF
to create the one for resuming QXL operation. For this we need to edit just 2 of the fields. Change the fields to
read:
Window Title: SMSQ Resume
Optional Parameters: /
Now click on "File" then click on "Save as” and use the name "SMSQres.PIF” (without the quotes, of course).
The "PIF Editor” is no longer required so double click on the "-" at the top left of the "PIF Editor” window to
close it. We've now got the PIFs created so it's time to assign them to icons and this is where things start to get
tricky.
You now need to have both the "File Manager” and the "Applications" windows on the screen together. To do
this, firstly grab the title bar of the “Applications” window and drag it up to the top of the screen. Now double
30
Windows Icon's and the QXL - (cont'd)
click on the "File Manager” icon and you should see the "File Manager” window open. Grab he "File Manager”
top border (not the title bar) and move the border down so that at least some of the "Application" window
becomes visible. You should now be able to see both the whole of the "File Manager” window and at least some
of the "Applications" window.
You now have to locate the PIFs you've created in the list of files in the "File Manager” window. Firstly, make
sure you're in the correct sub-directory by looking in the left hand portion of the "File Manager” window. If the
“windows” sub-directory is not highlighted then click on it to make it so. Now look in the right hand portion and
locate the file name "smsqcom.pif". Drag this item from the "File MMnager" window to the the "Applications"
window and drop it there. Now do the same for the "smsqres.pif” file.
The "Application" window now has 2 new icons both of which are the "MSDOS" icon. We now need to finish
them off. To do this click once on the one subtitled "Smsqcom", then click on the "Program Manager" "File" to
yield a menu, then click on "Properties" from this menu. Innthe properties menu change 2 of the fields as follows:
Description: SMSQ Commence
Working Directory: C:\QXL
Now click on the "Change Icon...” button. Windows may tell you there are none for this and ask you if you wish
to choose an icon from the "Program Manager”. Click on "OK". Now locate the closed door icon and click on it
then click on "OK" anddyou should be returned to the "Program Item Properties” window with the new icon
displayed. Click on the "OK" button and the "SMSQ Commence" icon is ready for use!
Do a similar thing for "Smsqres" with the minor difference that you set:
Description: SMSQ Resume
and choose the open door icon.
From now on you can start the QXL by double clicking on the "SMSQ Commence” icon and if you leave SMSQ
by Ctrl-ScrollLock you can go back to where you left off by double clicking on the "SMSQ Resume" icon. On
the PC I have, the speed of operation is appreciably slower under Windows. In my opinion Windows looks pretty
but doesn't really offer much.
A Brief Note
Newport, Rhode Island, USA - Bob Dyl
As you can see by the size of this issue IQLR has had to cut back in the number of pages per issue. Not for the
lack of material, but due to the 72% increase in the cost of paper since the turn of the year and the increased rate
of postage both here and abroad. We DO NOT want to increase the cost of IQLR hence the decreased number of
pages.
A number of readers have suggested that we shrink down to a Quanta size (AS) magazine but with no decrease in
the number of pages - each issue being around 70 pages). The savings are obvious and we would be able to
maintain our current subscription rates through Volume 6. WHAT DO YOU THINK ?? As IQLR is YOUR
magazine, we'll follow the path our readers suggest. Let us hear about YOUR choice.
You may have also noted a down grade in the quality of printing and lack of pictures in this issue. We had to
delay this issue for a couple of adverts and a very important article. The result was that we lost our printing
window with our printer. To get this issue out on time, it was necessary to use an alternate printing house that
does not have the quality of equipment that we normally use. My apologies.
31
DeskJet 320 Printer - A REVIEW
Tal-y-bont, Bangor, WALES - Dilwyn Jones
The Deskjet 320 is one of a line of low cost inkjet printers from Hewlett Packard. The printer is designed for
mobile computing on the PC, but it can be used with a QL too (in fact, I only use it on the QL!).
Aesthetically, the printer is very good. At last an equipment manufacturer has conceded that black can be a nice
colour for a computer - the printer and sheet feeder are all black with six grey buttons on the front panel.
It comes in a large box, given the size of the printer itself. I purchased it with the optional sheet feeder - it is a bit
laborious to use without it, but the sheet feeder adds greatly to its size. The sheet feeder does not hold a large
number of sheets of paper, but is adequate for personal use. A4 or American Letter size cut paper can be used.
Used without the sheet feeder, the printer stands upright on two small plastic supports. Used with the sheet
feeder, the printer leans forward at 45 degrees, with the feed tray backwards at 45 degrees. The feel of the whole
assembly is rather plasticky and I do not get the impression that the whole assembly would stand up to heavy use,
though you do have to remember that for the low price at which you can buy this printer, it may not be
reasonable to expect too much.
The plastic arms which support the paper in the tray do not inspire much confidence, for example. There is no
paper out tray on the sheet feeder - the paper feeds through the printer on a fairly flat path and comes out onto
two flimsy sprung arms on the front - the paper falls on the floor as soon as the next sheet feeds through. Without
the sheet feeder, you simply hand feed individual sheets print side up through the back and catch it as it comes
out the front. OK for light, mobile use where only the occasional sheet is printed, but for home use the sheet
feeder is essential. The sheet feeder occupies a footprint just slightly larger than an A4 sheet of paper, the printer
itself being about 5 to 6 inches tall. The printer just slots into the sheet feeder, no complex attachment
instructions, but be careful with the paper catching handles on the front when opening the door to insert the
cartridge, as I managed to make mine spring off and spent about half an hour trying to find the tiny spring in the
carpet on the floor!
‘The printer itself can be operated by a rechargeable battery (an option I did not purchase, so cannot comment on
battery life) or with a rather large mains adaptor which plugs into the right hand side of the printer. Below this is
the Centronics parallel printer socket, allowing you to plug in a parallel printer cable (e.g. as supplied with the
Super Gold Card) or a serial converter such as the Miracle unit.
The printer takes a standard HP Deskjet single capacity black cartridge, but cannot accept the high capacity
versions for some reason. A colour kit consisting of a cartridge holder and colour cartridge is available, though I
have not used this. In hardware terms, the colour upgrade involves only changing the cartridge. Unfortunately,
there are no programming details apart from a PC disk containing some Windows printer drivers. This is true of
the basic printer too - the manual shows how to connect it all up, but has no programming information
whatsoever, so you have to rely on currently available printér drivers or write your own if you have access to the
necessary information, e.g. with a separate programmer's reference manual from HP, at extra cost. Basically, the
printer responds to HP PCL level 3 control commands.
There are no DIP switches to set in the conventional sense. But there is an electronic switch setting which
consists of pressing buttons on the front panel which make the print cartridge move to certain positions inside the
printer so that an arrow on the cartridge carrier points to written settings inside the printer. This is not too
difficult to operate once you get used to it, but luckily it is a once and for all setting - you rarely need to adjust
the settings more than once. It remembers the settings while the power is switched off of course. The snag is that
there is no visual indication of the settings as there are with conventional DIP switches, you have to tell the
printer to print a report using one of the self test options.
In use, the printer is relatively fast and quict and convenient to use. It has a wide range of fonts and text sizes
from 8 points to 14 points for the proportional spaced fonts (CGT Times, a serifed font, and Univers, a sans serif
font). These fonts are not available in fixed pitch modes, which make them rather awkward to use from Quill, for
example. Fitched pitch fonts consist of Courier 5, 10, 16.67 and 20 characters per inch, while Letter Gothic is
available in 6, 12 and 24 characters per inch. Italics are available on most fonts, bold on some, although the bold
32
DeskJet 320 Printer (A REVIEW) - (cont'd)
font is often a separate font rather than a computed variant of the same font as on older dot matrix printers, so not
all sizes or font varieties can have features such as bold.
Courier 10, 16.67 and 20 characters per inch and Letter Gothic 12 and 16.67 characters per inch are available as
landscape fonts (i.e. they can print sideways along the length of the paper, useful for printing wide spreadsheets,
for example).
Text 87 users can use the Deskjet 510 driver in Typeset 94-Deskjet at the time of writing. Perhaps Fred Toussi
will release a pure Deskjet 320 driver in due course, though the Deskjet 510 driver appears to manage most of the
facilities with only a few slightly misnamed fonts in the list (e.g. GST Roman instead of CGT Times).
The printer's price is around £170 + V.A.T. here in the U.K. with a special bundle offer with the sheet feeder
available from some suppliers for 15 to 20 pounds more. HP's on site maintenance contracts are available for
around an extra 3 years, offering 3 years of worry free printing! The battery pack will set you back a further 30
pounds or so. Watford Electronics can supply a carrying case for this printer if used mobile.
The basic printer is quite cheap, but the price soon mounts if you buy all the accessories. I recommend this
printer for light domestic or mobile use, but not for heavy office use where a desktop version of the Deskjet
family would be better. The printer looks good, there is little to go wrong and despite its rather fragile feel, has
been a trusty little workhorse for me for a few months now and I am quite happy with it. It takes up little room,
prints fast enough for me, has typically good quality inkjet printing, it looks good next to the QL and I have been
quite happy with it.
TF SERVICES
_superHermes =
+ 1.5k user data storable in EEPROM (Electrically erasable
Hermes co-processor solved the major problems of the QL
co-processor. superHermes does this and adds the
following, all on a quality circuit board not much larger
than the original 8049;
~All Hermes features (working serial input/ existing QL
keyboard improved and debounced/ key click/ independent
ser 1/2 input) plus full 19200 throughput on serl/2 input not
affected by sound
- IBM AT compatible keyboard interface, configurable for all
countries
- HIGH SPEED RS232 serial port (SER3) for full
throughput with hardware handshaking from 1200 up to
38400bps. Higher rates possible with reduced throughput
and short cables. DTR/DSR/DCD signals provided.
+ THREE low speed RS232 inputs from 1200bps down to
30bps (eg serial mouse/RTTY)
+ Capslock/scroll lock LED connector
* Turbo connector, IBM style panel/led can be controlled
externally or by QL
~ Keylock connector - to lock IBM/QL keyboard and mouse
am Tel: (+44) 1344-890986
non-volatile memory)
* Plug connectors on pcb for all relevant features
All this is made possible by the high speed RISC
co-processor (PIC 1742)
Fitting is a simple job - simply remove the top of the QL (8
screws) & replace the IC marked 8049’ or Hermes next to
mdv1. Can be fitted to bare boards & is especially suitable
for QL boards in IBM PC style cases. QL control software
is provided.
Cost (incl manual & software) £92(£87)[£90]
Capslock/scroll lock LED with plug ... £1.50(£1)[£1.50]
Allowance for Hermes upgrade (send IC only) ........£10
[Complete 12° connector assemblies
(specify if panel mounting:
Kybd (to DIN sck....£3,50(£3)[£3.50)
ISER3 (to 25D plug) ......£4.50(£4)[£4.50)
Ser mouse (to 9D pig)...£3.50(£3)1£3.50)
[Open ended connectors (socket & 12°
cable with bared tinned ends)
loway (SER3).. £2,50(£2){2.50]
l4way (extra RS232) £2(£1,50){£2]
Sway (kybd/spare) £2(£1.50){£2}
Holly Corner, Priory Road, Chavcy Down, ASCOT, Berks, SL5 8RL
Fax & BBS: (+44) 1344-890987
Prices incl AIRMAIL pos/packing. Prices are: EC except UK (Europe outside EC)
foutside Europe]. Ring for UK prices or see Quanta. Payment by Mastercard
VisaAccesy/£ cheque/UK postal order or CASH! ‘Send IRC for full list and details.
MasterCard
CDROM ona QxXL
Newport, Michigan, USA - Dennis Donahue
How I did it.....
But first a little history. Before my life as a computer tech head started, I had a distrust of computers. Those
things that could file everyones life into a Big Goverment data base. Then I was introduced to a TS1000 and I
thought " How could this little black box be so evil? Look it even plays games.” Being a mechanic, I like gagets
and I need to know how they work but as I learned the ins and outs of of it the desire for more power began. I
wanted color and sound and no more ram packs.
The answer was the TS2068, a great computer, but those cassette tapes ‘aie just too slow. I wanted speed. So I
purchaced an AERCO dual disk drive system at the first Midwest Sinclair Computerfest in Dayton, Ohio. No it
wasn't quite Plug n Play because I had to convert all my programs to disk format. So with all I had learned so far
and help from my friends including Keith Watson, Steve Spaulding and David Hill, I was feeling pretty
successful.
But was I ready for the Quantum Leap? Yes!! the QL had a more powerfull programming language and I could
still use my RGB monitor and printer but I lost speed without disk drives. A Trump Card and two 5S 1/4 quad
drives had me happy again. So now what can I do with all this power?
Well by now I had heard of other languages and an MSDOS emulator for the QL but shopping around I found
that I could get an XT for nearly the same price.
So it was the power of the QL to emulate other computers that lead me to those computers and now with another
emulator I have returned. The ultimate emulator is the QXL with the SMSQ operating system. With them the
power and speed of the QL is comparable with current alternatives and has access to the latest hardware. Which
brings me to the point of this story.
The CDROM.
Now with the desire to have all of my systems in one box and the QXL card installed 1 began relearning QDOS
(SMSQ) and rediscovering the fun of my early experiences. I had realized power and speed with the QXL and
Hard Disks. I noticed that when I selected a files directory of winS_ the CDROM light would come on but
returned a "no medium" message. What was it looking for? A QXL_WIN file? How can I find out?
After contacting a company about having a CDROM disk made I began building a S0 MEG QXL_WIN file with
every QL program I could find, mostly in zip format. Being a QUANTA member and also having just bought the
DP collection and all my other files of old 1 had SO MEG. But a CDROM holds 640 MEG so why waste the rest
of the disk? So I began loading in other sinclair emulators and all the files I had downloaded from the BBS' over
the years until now I had 200 MEG which I stored on tape backup and was ready to send it be recorded but I
hesitated, I wasn't sure it would work, then the answer came in an advert for a CDROM recorder. Now I could
do it myself and also record audio CD's from my hard disk recording system. Within one week of installing the
SCSII-2 CD-R the disk was recorded, then read by the QXL! Yes programs can be run right from the disk just
like a hard drive and now I have a backup of every QL and Z80 file on one disk.
It's been a long journey to get to this point but I feel that some how the QL will survive into the next century with
support and loyalty of its users. People who like to do it ourselves without big corporations telling us what we
want.
My next project is to scan my old Sinclair magazines and save to CDROM for a data base.
..happy sinclairing, ... DENNIS
(Editor's Note: If you are interested in having a CD made or have any questions about CDROM's and the QXL,
Dennis can be contacted at Qbox-USA or thru IQLR.)
“4
Independent Producer's
Independent Producer's
Mini Mart of Values
“The painless way to shop world wide "
UPDATE! MAGAZINE
P.O. BOX 17
MEXICO, IN 46958 USA
The LARGEST magazine in the world supportin;
the Sinclair QL, Spectrum,TS2068, ZX81, and .
Cambridge Z88 Computers.
A quarterly magazine with issue year running from
OCTOBER to JULY. We are NOW in our 8th year
of publication.
To subscribe send a check made payable to UPDATE
Magazine for the amount that is applicable.to you.
USA & CANADA $20
Rest of World £18 or DM40
Cash, Checks, or Moncy Orders are acceptible.
Albin Hessler Software
Im Zellfeld 25 D-72631 Aichtal
Tel + Fax +49 7127 56280
Software for the Pointer Environment
Cueshell (Ver 1.16) £39.00 $63.00 om 98
Desktop Program. Now with screen saver
CueDark especially designed for SMSQ
EASYPTR 3 Development System
Part 1 Basis Jobs £39.00 $ 63.00 om 08
Part 2 SBASIC Toolkit © 19.50 $31.50 pm 49
Part 3 Library Routines 19.50 $31.50 om 49
SERMouse £ 29.00 $ 47.00 om 73
QL serial mouse (works with SSC ond SMSQ/E)
Ready for SER2 (specify BT or SUB-D9)
DISA 2 £ 39.00 $63.00 om v8
Interactive Disassembler. Many new features
Order through IQLR or directly from us
&
We speak English.
We accept eurocheques in DM or personal cheques in
‘any EU currency drawn to any EU bank
SOLVIT-PLUS 2
ELECTRONIC DICTIONARY
% Anagram, Wildcard, Palindrome, Scramble
and Word in Word searches.
% English, Dutch, French, German and
ftalian ‘dictionaries supplied.
% (deal for word games and crosswords.
£IS * FLUO * DM35 * $22
10 supplied. Pay by cash
ional Money Order or
ccount. No currency
9 Cheque drawn on UK bank!
Wood and Wind Computing
RR3 Box 92
Comish, NH 03745 USA
Telephone: +1 603 675 2218
The software below prove that ARCHIVE continues to be
one of the most useful QL working environments. They
work from menus that are simple but powerful. Memory
expansion required and a fast processor is recommended.
QLerk - The only complete financial program for the QL
QLerk software & manual (V3.21) $62 141 OM91
-DBEasy - Improved database creator and manager with
plug & play address database and daily planner.
DBEasy software (V1.6) $24 L16 _DM36
DBProgs - Improved Toolkit of universal ARCHIVE utilities
DBProgs software (V1.8) $18 112 DM27
Order through IQLR or directly using your personal
check or a money order. For free catalog or information
about upgrading write directly.
How To Order
You may order direct from the supplier (prices listed include VAT where applicable and airmail post anywhere in the world. For your convience
you may place your order through IQLR and take advantage of our ability to accept Personal or Bank cheques drawn on a UK bank or Buro
cheques drawn in Pounds Sterling. You may also make payment using Postal (drawn in either USS or Pounds Sterling), Personal or Bank cheques
in USS drawn on a US bank.
When ordering through IQLR, PLEASE make all cheques payable to IQLR and post your order to either our UK or North American office. We
will process you order and the individual supplier will post it directly to you.
PLEASE NOTE: All ENQUIRES are to be made directly to the supplier NOT IOLR.
CD_PLAYER_BAS
Oldbury, West Midlands, GREAT BRITAIN - Simon N Goodwin
The First SuperBasic CD Player
I was interested to read the discussion of tape backup and CD player control in volume 5 issue 2 of IQLR, on
page 6, since I sorted this out on my 68040 based SuperQL in January, and all the necessary BASIC will appear
in the next PD release of Amiga Qdos! At first I thought this was unlikely to be useful to other Qdos enthusiasts,
but in view of recent interest in the QXL, the rebirth of the Amiga thanks to Escom, and the Mac Qdos emulator,
there may be quite a few people with appropriate hardware to share my work.
You can select, play and pause tracks with single key-presses. The program also controls the CD-ROM drawer,
so you can open and close the drive to change disks from SuperBASIC. The program supports all possible SCSI
and SCSI 2 commands, so you can also check drive names and firmware versions, track and disc times, read
audio or data sectors, and communicate with other SCSI devices - I've had it working with CD, DAT and a 1,920
Mb hard drive, and the same code will also suit direct SCSI links between computers, SCSI. scanners and similar
peripherals. All you need to do is put the correct command sequence in a Qdos string, and wait for the results.
The program handles all the ‘phase changes’ and communication between devices. Large transfers are obviously a
bit slow by SCSI standards from SuperBASIC, even on a 33MHz 68040, but it works!
The original objective for this little hack was to let Qdos users play CD Audio tracks from a SCSI 2 CD-ROM
drive. It communicates directly with the common NCR 53c710 SCSI controller, used on the Warp Engine, and
can be converted for similar NCR/Zorro interfaces such as PP&S Zeus, CSA Magnum, Commodore 3091 or
DKB A4091 - all it needs to know is the base address of the controller registers, which is set up in a variable by
PROCedure SCSI_VARS, near the start of the program.
It has been tested with an Amiga 4000 with Warp Engine and a NEC Multispin 2x CD-ROM drive (firmware
revision 2111.0). It should suit other CD drives as long as they have a SCSI interface, but not all drives support
software eject and CD loading. If you try this, please let us know how you get on.
Since the program performs direct hardware access it falls into the category of a ‘hack’, and may need changes for
other systems - but the NCR controllers are quite widely used, at least on prformance systems, and the same chip
is used on some MAC and PC SCSI expanders. Others use its predecessor the 53C700, which has almost the
same register set, and the 53C810 is a single-chip version for the PCI bus. It's almost exactly the same as the
53C710 except that bytes are in the Intel ‘little-endian’ order. You can sort this out by reference to the appropriate
NCR hardware or programming manual. NCR have a toll-free support hotline in the USA, on 1-800 334-5454,
and a bulletin board packed with interesting files on (USA) 719 596-1649.
The program looks for the CD drive at SCSI unit 1, and lets you specify an alternative unit (0..6) if it can't find a
CD drive there. You can change the default by altering another assignment at the start of SCSI_VARS. If you
have more than one CD drive (SCSI supports up to seven!) you can pick between them by changing the number.
Unit 7 normally refers to the SCSI controller itself, as SCSI devices can communicate in any combination and the
computer is not necessarily involved at all!
The SCSI specification is freely distributable and quite widely available, although some devices - particularly old
SCSI-1 models - do not implement all the possible commands. The SCSI 2 specification number is X3.131-198X
and there's a US Bulletin board dedicated to SCSI support on 719 574-0424.
Various SCSI operations require a delay before the next action. These are most efficiently handled with
interrupt-driven machine code, but here its implemented with SuperBASIC delay loops that perform up to TIME
iterations before giving up. You may need to adjust the value of TIME to suit your CD drive or Amiga set-up. If
the value is too low you're likely to see ‘Phase mismatch’ error reports at the bottom of the screen. This indicates
that the SCSI ‘Initiator’ and ‘Target’ devices have got out of step. NCR_RESET will re-initialise the link and all
connected devices.
36
CD_PLAYER_BAS - (cont'd)
By default (DEBUGGING=0) the program displays a menu showing the CD tracks available. It reports ‘track
does not want to play’ if you ask it to play a track that is not CD-Audio - usually this means data, at the start of
most mixed-format disks. If you set the flag DEBUGGING=1 you get a messier but more informative scrolling
display as each SCSI command is issued. This can be useful if you're tuning the program for a particular system.
If there is a disk in the drive the program selects it, waits for it to spin up, and reads the table of contents to find
out how many tracks it has. You can also read other information, like track durations and even the bar code of the
disk!
CD_PLAYER_BAS is entirely controlled from the keyboard, with the minimum of key-presses. Letter keys issue
the commands shown in the table. Mouse fans could use the PTR_X%, PTR_Y% and PTR_BUTTON%
functions to detect clicks and select the command or track that corresponds to the cursor position. These
functions appear in Amiga Qdos and DIY Toolkit serial mouse code.
The commands available vary depending on the current state of the program and CD drive. If there is a disc in the
drive you can select a particular track by typing its number; tracks are shown by numbered blocks on the screen,
like a ‘real’ CD player's front panel.
Amiga QD0S SCSI CO PLAYER v1.8 =
Simon N Goodwin, February 1995
Drive 1: NEC CO-ROM ORIVE:2111.0 type 5
ek SS SS SS SS Se SS
SS SS se S52 S22 ss
[FP] Pause [S] Stop CE] Eject CO TQ] Quit
For disks with up to nine tracks, all you need to type is the track number, with no need for ENTER. You may
need to type two digits if there are more tracks to choose from - e.g. to distinguish track 1 from track 10. Single
digits that could be ambiguous are shown with a leading zero, e.g. 01. This can be selected by pressing Zero then
One, or One then Enter or Space, or just Zero if there are no more than 19 tracks. A cursor appears if an extra
digit is required, and the program will not continue till the user enters a digit (to make a two-digit value) or Enter,
Space or Escape.
If the control menu seems too simple, and you'd like more direct access, the program is structured as a collection
of SuperBASIC commands which can be used directly if required. It is important to enter NCR_RESET at the
37
CD_PLAYER_BAS - (cont'd)
start of a session or the controller may generate unexpected interrupts which lock up the Qdos emulator when
they are not cleared. Thereafter the drive can be controlled directly with commands such as:
CD_PAUSE
CD_CONTINUE
CD_EJECT
CD_PLAY <track>
Other commands will work with any specified SCSI unit - not just CD drives. These take one parameter, the
SCSI unit number to be addressed:
i REQUEST_SENSE
TEST_READY
DRIVE_ABORT
DRIVE_RESET
DRIVE_IDENT
These routines display informative messages if DEBUGGING=1. There are three more routines that summarise
the current state of the SCSI bus:
BUS_FREE (status FuNction)
NOW (prints SCSI bus state)
SHOW_STATE (shows control lines)
If a phase error occurs, low-level procedures can be invoked to move from the current phase towards
BUS_FREE, e.g. GET_STATUS and MESSAGE_IN after most commands. If you are not quick the device may
detect a timeout and reset the bus before you can prod it in the right direction; use PRINT BUS_FREE or
SHOW_STATE to find out what's going on.
This is only a small step in the direction of SCSI support for Qdos, but it's a start and shows how much can be
done from interpreted SuperBASIC. I have used the same code to control an Archive Python SCSI DAT drive,
and plan to employ it with Iomega 100 Mb removable SCSI disks as well. If you're lucky enough to have the
required hardware, please try this on your SuperQL and let us know how you get on.
The program CD_PLAYER_BAS is part of the new Amiga Qdos 3.23 release, on the 720K QL format utilities
disk. It will be available from Qubbesoft and SJPD, as both these PD houses have Amigas as well as QLs and
other emulators. Make sure you get the QL format disk'if you have a PC, ST, QL or Thor, as other machines
cannot read 880K or 1760K native Amiga format disks.
TABLE: CD CONTROL KEYS
[S] Start replay from the first track ~OR..
[S] Stop playing audio and stop the CD motor °
[P] Pause audio playback - leave the CD drive motor running
{C] Continue playing from the position reached before a pause
[E] Eject the disc currently in the CD drive
[N] Load the disc (if ejected) and read its table of contents
[Q] Quit to SuperBASIC, leaving the CD drive playing or idle
DIGIT Choose any track by number; usually no need to press ENTER.
(Editor's Note: Both of the articles that preceed this note show us that the world of CDROM's is not out of our
reach. Our question is "NOT IF, BUT WHEN, WILL WE BE ABLE TO USE A CDROM WITH OUR QL".)
38
QXL Successor - QXL GOLD
For the reasons cited below Miracle Systems have decided not to manufacture another batch of QXLs. The
last batch has been completely sold out and no additional QXLs can be supplied.
The main reason is the ever rising cost of parts. The components that contribute to most of the cost are the
PCB, QXLGLUE chip, the Processor and Memory chips. The cost of each of these has risen since the
launch of the QXL, so much so, that the cost roughly equals the selling price and threatens to surpass it.
This is contrary to historic trends for semiconductor pricing.
Experience has shown that raising the price makes people feel that you are profiteering and puts a rather
sour taste in their mouth so this is out of the question. As is common with rising prices the delivery times
are lengthening. The 68EC040 processor is on a 16 week lead time and the memory is on an indefinite lead
time.
Another reason is the European Union EMC Directive which takes effect on 01 January 1996. Every
electrical item sold as new within the EU must pass a very stringent EMI radiation test. This is something
like the FCC regulations test in the USA but much tougher. The EMC Directive has been implemented as
criminal law and carries a maximum penalty of £40,000.00 plus 2 years in jail. The cost of entering a
product is quite high and there is no guarantee that the QXL would pass.
So you can see that if the QXL was entered and passed the EMC test then Miracle Systems would have a
loss making product and may not even be able to obtain all the necessary parts.
Incidentally, the above reasons also apply to the SUPER GOLD CARD. The last batch is currently being
sold (we are able to hold our advertised prices for the remaining SUPER GOLD CARDS).
Make Virtue of Necessity
This combination of circumstances is an opportunity. Miracle Systems have decided to develop a simple
product which will allow you to turn your GOLD CARD or SUPER GOLD CARD into a QXL Work-a-
Like (requiring NO modification of your present GC or SGC). The new product will be called “"QXL
GOLD". It will plug into a PC's ISA slot just like the QXL did and have a QL style expansion connector
onto which you plug your GOLD CARD or SUPER GOLD CARD.
The cost will be a £100.00 (£90.00 outside the EU) fully inclusive of VAT and postage. The EMC
Directive means that this product may not be manufactured after the end of the year so we are taking orders
now. Considering that QXL GOLD is not yet available, if you place an order now you may cancel it at any
time before delivery.
Your Cheque or Credit Card will not be banked until your QXL GOLD is ready for dispatch. As with all
our products the usual 14 day money back guarantee applies.
20 Mow Barton, Yate, Bristol, BS175NF, U.K.
Telephone/Fax: +44 (0) 1454 883602
SINGLLSAS WTIOVAIN
SINA.LSAS WIOVUIN
SCs
OFFICE/FAX 01494871319 (EEC) W/V. Richardson & Co.
MOBILE: O8SO0 597650
ChalforeS:Peter
Buckinghamshire, SLO ONS
THE CAMBRIDGE Z88 A4 NOTEBOOK
WITH BUILT-IN WORD PROCESSOR, SPREADSHEET,
DATABASE, BASIC, CALCULATOR, CLOCK, ALARM,
CALENDAR, & VT52 TERMINAL.
USES .4XAA ALKALINE CELLS(c.20 HOURS)
CAVERIOGE 283 A4 NOTESOOX COMPUTER & ACCESSORIES
IT IS RECOMMENDED THAT ACCESSORIES ARE BOUGHT SOON
AS THE PRESENT STOCK IS RUNNING LOW. NEW STOCK
WILL HAVE TO BE REPRICED. ALL UK PRICES INCLUDE VAT.
UK. USA.
CAMBRIDGE Z88 COMPUTER. £99 $130
2k RAMPACK £16 $22
128k RAMPACK £28 $37
512k RAMPACK £60 $80
1Meg RAMPACK £120 $160
32k EPROM PACK £16 $22
128k EPROM PACK £22 $30
256k EPROM PACK £45 $60
EPROM ERASER £32 $43
PARALLEL PRINTER LEAD £22 $30
SERIAL PRINTER LEAD £18 $24
MODEM £90 $120
MAINS ADAPTER (230vac; 6v,500ma) £15 $20
TOPPER (PROTECTIVE COVER) £12 $16
CARRYING CASE £16 $20
"288 MAGIC’ A BETTER USER HANDBOOK £15 $20
FILE TRANSFER TO OTHER COMPUTERS
SPECIAL Z88-QL SERIAL LEAD £10 $12
COPY DISKS OF QUANTA PROGS IMP/EXP
& ARCHIVE EXPORT Each £2 $2
PCLINK KIT (For PCs) £25 $33
Z88 TO MAC KIT £30 $40
288 TO BBC KIT £15 $20
UK PRICES INCLUDE VAT: USA PRICES DO NOT. FOR OTHER NON-EEC COUNTRIES
DEDUCT 10% FROM THE UK PRICES.
POSTAGE _UK_ £5 EEC £15. USA £20. OTHER COUNTRIES £30.
ALL THE STOCK IS NEW AND IS WARRANTIED FOR 90 DAYS. IN THE EVENT OF
REPLACEMENT BEING AGREED, BUT THE ITEM BEING OUT OF STOCK AT THE TIME,
A REFUND WILL BE MADE PROVIDED THE ITEM IS RECEIVED IN GOOD CONDITION.
QL _& PC COMPUTER USERS WILL FIND THE CAMBRIDGE 788 ESPECIALLY USEFUL
FOR WORK AWAY FROM THE DESKTOP. WITH TRANSFER PROGS DATA CAN BE SAFELY
EXCHANGED WITH THEIR DESKTOP SYSTEM.
W.N.RICHARDSON & CO CONTINUES TO PROVIDE FULL SPARES AND
SERVICES FOR SINCLAIR COMPUTERS, QL, & THE CAMBRIDGE 288.
WHAT WILL THE QL COLLECTION COST ME?
Just £179 in total. There is nothing to add, no hidden taxes, and P&P to anywhere on earth is
included (add £5 for Airmail). You save over £2,100. DP recognises that you probably have
some titles already (though perhaps not the latest releases), and some may not be of interest to
you yet (likely to change when you see them!) - the price reflects this! THE QL COLLECTION is
worth it even if you only want to update all your existing DP products: however, DP will continue
to accept orders for individual DP programs at the prices quoted if you really insist.
WHAT EXACTLY IS INCLUDED IN THE QL COLLECTION?
You get the fullest, very latest, most up-to-date releases of all - every single one - of the 66 QL
programs listed. The software is the finest, and the QL's very best. The titles would cost you
over £2,300 (plus applicable P&P) to buy individually - you can check this by summing the
prices overleaf, or those quoted in earlier ads. The only titles omitted are Mega Dictionary (only
for 2Mb RAM systems - add £15 for it), MS-DOS v6.22 upgrade (add £90) and any less capable
variant of a title that is itself included in THE QL COLLECTION (e.g., since the top-of-the-range
PROFESSIONAL PUBLISHER is included, DESKTOP PUBLISHER is obviously excluded).
You get both versions of PC CONQUEROR (as the list shows) so as to cater for all hardware
variations. You may never ever need to buy another QL program again. The range of software
you will get is truly staggering. It is too good to be true. But it is true - while the offer lasts...
WHAT ABOUT THE PROGRAM DOCUMENTATION?
All the latest applicable documentation (lots and lots of it) is included on disk, and can be read
and printed using Perfection Special Edition or Editor Special Edition, which are also both
included, and which can - of course - be used to search, browse, analyse or “edit" manuals at
your leisure. Printed copies may be bought later if wanted - full details are sent with the order.
WHY CAN'T | FIND THE CATCH IN ALL OF THIS?
Because there isn't any. DP, whose QL commitment continues, makes this super offer to
celebrate the birth of a marvellous baby daughter Michelle, now through all her early problems,
to Julie-and Freddy. THE QL COLLECTION is licensed for use by the purchaser alone, who by
buying it agrees not to resell or otherwise pass on any part of it, or of any DP software already
possessed. Technical support is negotiable: full details are supplied with the order for you to
take up should you want to do so. DP reserves the right to withdraw THE QL COLLECTION
offer at any time later than 14 days after your receiving this magazine, so please do hurry.
WHAT HARDWARE WILL I NEED TO RUN THINGS?
You will need a twin disk drive (DD, HD or ED, 3.5" or 5.25"), lots (123?) of blank disks and
over 1.5Mb RAM (Gold Card, Super Gold Card, QXL, ST/QL and equivalents) to fully use all
the software. The vast majority of titles will, however, work on much smaller systems: earlier
DP ads indicate with precision the minimum hardware needed to run each program. If no disk
size is specified when ordering, DP will assume 3.5" DD. If you do not yet have a powerful
enough QL system, you may wish to contact a hardware dealer and buy, say, a second-hand
Gold Card and/or twin disk drive (preferably 3.5" DD or HD - avoid Mitsubishi, and if HD or ED,
ensure 100% compatibility with all Gold Cards is fully guaranteed by the supplier) as needed.
HOW CAN ! GET MY COPY OF THE QL COLLECTION?
THE QL COLLECTION can only be obtained directly, by posting your order (including payment
of £179 by cheque drawn on a UK bank / building society, Eurocheque or postal order, or
quoting a VISA or MASTERCARD credit card no: and card expiry date) as soon as possible to:
DIGITAL PRECISION LTD, 222 THE AVENUE, LONDON E4 9SE
THE QL COLLECTION
A Scot's Visit to Oak Ridge
Glasgow, SCOTLAND - Giles Walker
After seeing details of the proposed 3rd North American QL Show in the March/April edition of IQLR, I started
to make arrangements immediately; any delay would have ensured that some insuperable problem would arise or
that time would slip by until it became too late to get organised.
The above mentioned copy of IQLR had a very pretty picture of Michelle Vaccha on the cover and I have no
doubt that most of you thought that one so young couldn't really be using a QL yet. However George Gwilt, of
the Scottish QL User Group, has exchanged letters with the young lady concerned and she was able to give him
advice on certain problems that he had with a DP program. This correspondence I have seen with my own eyes. It
is true that the spelling and handwriting left something to be desired but, all in all, it is probably better than my
own.
Airline timetables contain much information, many of the better bits, such as what sort of aeroplane one might be
travelling in, being tucked away in the small print. Why worry? Well, if the aircraft has two engines, when one
stops it only has 50% of it's power remaining to get you from the middle of the Atlantic, where engines stop, to
the nearest land. Starting off with three engines, the loss of one leaves two thirds of the original thrust available.
Obviously twelve engines would be even better but this, in turn, raises problems of a different nature. Three is
not a bad compromise.
The next consideration is how to get from the first port of landing to a convenient airfield to Oak Ridge. This
sector should ideally be flown in a jet for two reasons. Firstly they fly higher and secondly they don't have
propellers. Propellers introduce yet more problems and are best avoided. I'm not suggesting that any of you who
might possess a propeller driven aeroplane should remove them or, even worse. If it was designed that way, leave
well alone.
Applying the above conditions to the timetable resulted in a DC10 flight to Atlanta followed by quick hop in a
MD80 to Knoxville. This second bit was no mistake on my part. Although the MD80 has only two engines, at no
time during a flight from Atlanta to Knoxville should one be over the middle of the Atlantic.
Having arrived at Knoxville on schedule, I duly paid $40 to the local limo company for the ‘short 20 minute ride’
to Oak Ridge. This seemed a bit excessive at the time but, the ambient temperature not being within bargaining
range, the deal was struck and as the journey stretched on to 45 minutes it became better value as the miles rolled
by.
Despite being tired, we both enjoyed the countyside and, as we approached Oak Ridge, it became apparent that
nothing seemed to be very old and that everything was very clean and tidy. The ‘clean and tidy’ part was probably
a contrast to the streets of Glasgow but the 'new’ bit didn't sink in until the next day. Although I had never been to
‘Tennessee before, somehow Oak Ridge seemed to have a familiar ring and finally I remembered the Manhattan
project.
Not only is Oak Ridge clean and tidy, it also doesn't have any citizens crossing the street on foot, which is logical
if everyone goes wherever in a car, however with the European invasion, which started with our arrival, all that
changed. The locals seemed a bit bemused by the sudden appearance of jay walkers but they were very friendly
about it all.
By the next morning the Super8 Motel had some more QLers from Germany, led by Jochen Mertz, and messrs.
Honeyball, Firshman and Reeves from the U.K. The latter decided on bicycles as the preferred form of transport,
although they had a hire car which they drove from J.F.K. These are not the sort of gents that the QL scene can
spare, so I was glad that they gave up the bikes after Stuart came ‘home’ with one hand bandaged and the other
with plasters, although he assured me that the accident happened when he was trying to improve the machine
(Tony's?) rather than ride it.
Come the great day we sought out the church hall, reputed to be ‘one block down the street’, where the show was
41
A Scot's Visit to Oak Ridge - (cont'd)
due to take place. Most of my visits to the US of A have been to New York, Chicago, LA etc., where a block, is a
block, is a block. Oak Ridge didn't appear to have any blocks but by that time I had decided that people who
travel everywhere in cars don't have much sense of distance anyway; also, by that time, I had given in and hired a
car to cross the street in safety.
Although I was only able to spend the morning at the show, - considering the possibility of a future event, it
seemed politic not to be absent the whole day - it was fascinating to be able to talk to all the traders and wise
people present. I invariably learn a lot at these events and this was no exception. A good variety of tempting
stuff was on sale and I was duly tempted. No need to tell her about all that! Also to come my way was a prize in
the Grand Draw, which turned out to be a copy of PROGS DATAdesign. Most welcome.
Remembering the instructions in the aforementioned March/April issue, we decided to stay a couple of extra days
after the show and took the opportunity to explore the locality, thus using the car to travel along the road as well
as across it. Lovely countryside but somewhat crowded at Dollywood, where some few million fellow beings had
also decided to visit, in a temperature of around 100 degrees fahrenheit.
All in all a very enjoyable break from the Scottish weather, which was, life being what it is, very good during the
time we were away, being fine grass growing weather. However that has now been dealt with so it's time to
investigate some of my purchases.
* My thanks to all who organised the event." When's the next one?
(Editor's Note: The next North American get-together (our 4th) will be held in Newport, Rhode Island on the first
weekend in June 1996. The affair will be hosted by NESQLUG (The New England Sinclair QL User Group).
Watch for additional details in upcoming issues of IQLR.)
PRIZE WINNERS
Newport, Rhode Island, USA - Bob Dyl
The following individuals were the proud recipients of the door prizes offered at the recent 3rd North American
QL show. Special thanks go to the suppliers who made it all possible.
Tim Swenson Masterpiece Graphics Card (when ready) Miracle Systems
Jon Kaczor Disk Collection Mechanical Affinity
John J. Impellizzeri Qubide Interface Qubbesoft P/D
March R. Renick QLerk Software Wood & Wind Computing
Bronce Fitzgerald Minerva MK I TF Services
Doug La Verne QL Computer Mechanical Affinity
Giles Walker DATAdesign Software Progs
Al Boehm QD 7 The PE Editor Jochen Merz Software
Prizes winners names were drawn at random by individuals who happened to get to close to me at drawing time.
The winner then came forward and picked a plastic egg from a box. Upon opening the egg the winner pulled out
a small piece of paper and announced the prize he had won.
We had a lot of fun doing it this way and it seemed the fair way of doing things. Yes, you guessed it. We had one
winner who drew his own name, but he shall remain nameless (March Renick).
42
QL Mini Tower System
Have your QL, Memory Expansion,
Floppy Drives, Hard Drive all placed
into a PC Mini Tower Case. Everything
runs from PC PSU, including your QL.
Turns your QL into a modern
professional looking system.
S.A.E. or LR.C. For Enquiry Form
PD & Shareware Software
Over 70 Disk's of Public Domain & Shareware Software for the Sinclair Q.L.
which includes the following:-
Psion Xchange V3.903, C68 'C' Compiler V4.14c
Molecular Graphics V5.11, QL Home Finance
LineDesign 2 Demo, MicroEmacs V3.11, XLisp V2.1d
S.A.E. or I.R.C. for Printed Catalogue of complete software Library
LineDesign 2 Clip-Art
Over 100mb of Adobe Illustrator Clip-Art files. These files will all load directly into
Linedesign 2. Various themes are catered for such as Food, Backgrounds,
Cartoons, Transport etc. S.A.E. or I.R.C. for Catalogue showing examples.
QUBIDE
QL AT/IDE Interface
Allows you to connect modem AT/IDE
Hard Drives to your QL. A massive
amount of storage space can now be
made available for your programs and
files. Compatible with SGC, GC, TC and
most memory expansion systems, also
Minerva & Hermes compatible.
£63.00p
fully inclusive of P&P (UK)
+5% (Europe), +10% (Rest of World)
AT/IDE Hard Drives QUBBESoft P/D-—
A selection of new and used AT/IDE Hard 38,Brunwin Road, Rayne, Braintree
Drives compatible with QUBIDE available. All | ~ "~~ Essex. CM7 5BU. ae
Capacities from 40mb upto 420mb. Please ring "Fel: +44 (0)1376 347852 —_
or write for current stock availability. - Fax: +44 (0)1376 331267:
It's TIME for the NEXT LEAP...
Zapresic, CROATIA - Zeljko Nastasic
The question: Do we need a next generation QL, or more accurately put, a new QDOS/SMSQ hardware
platform?
Thave been living with the current hardware almost half of my life, and having the fortune or misfortune to get to
know other platforms as well, as far as I'm concerned, the answer is a resounding YES. In fact, I'm willing to
commit as much time as it takes to make the new hardware a reality, and I'm happy to say I'm not the only one.
As for my reasons - well, it is not simple to explain...
Let us examine the current state of affairs: The QL is almost 12 years old. In the computer business,
this is almost talking geology, but for now, we will not use this as an argument that it needs changing - in fact the
dominant computer technology used today is also of a comparable age, that being the PC. Enhancements through
the years have obviously worked for it, so we may expect similar ones to work for the QL. In fact, despite the
QUL's age, many ideas behind the machine, or rather the operating system, have to this very day stayed fresh, and
in some cases even avant-garde. For instance - would you believe me if I told you that QDOS (and now SMSQ)
has been an ‘object oriented’ operating system for the past 6 years or so - at least in the sense of how the concept
is perceived in the PC world? Probably not, but I will give you a clue - Things!
Considering that there is no industry behind the QDOS/SMSQ machines it is amazing how many excellent
concepts have been added to the operating system during the years. Unfortunately, the problem remains the
hardware - although the operating system is tremendously easily expanded, without easily accessible ‘modern’
hardware (i.e. the one you see on a neighbours, or even your own PC) many people loose interest in the machine.
This is a vicious circle, with less users, there is even less chance of the machine progressing, both hardware and
software wise.
As an up side, the need to use the resources optimally has resulted in a philosophy of using brains instead of
brawn to get the needed performance. In this, the QL shares grounds with many workstations, or other
pinnacle-of-technology computers, but has little common with the general PC world. The later has unfortunately
progressed into the consumer frenzy driven upward curves, similar to automotive industry of the 50's - you are
not encouraged to be clever - why be clever to make a program fast, when you can put a recommendation in the
manual to use a faster CPU or more memory? Oh, yes - you can do that! Once you have the money, it's as simple
to get a faster CPU or more memory as going downtown shopping. However, in the QL world there have long
been NO faster CPUs or a simple means to add more memory. Hardware advances have been slow and sporadic,
and because of the small number of people involved, expensive. Therefore, they have always (with only three
exceptions that I know of, two of which failed, and one recuperated in the nick of time) concentrated on
expanding the existing system, simply to save the previous investments in it.
Unfortunately, the original QL hardware is hopelessly outdated. With this, I am referring to the QL's main board
and the expansion bus. Although many dramatic increases of capability have been made by adding hardware to
the QL (like the Goldcard and Super Gold card from Miracle), During the years it has become increasingly
difficult to provide further advances to the hardware, which are needed as solutions to old or new problems. At
this point it has become almost impossible to provide levels of performance comparable to the rest of the
computing world, for instance in graphics and sound, and in a lesser, but still sizeable extent in communications.
Almost all of us know about the limitations of the QL such as bus speed of about 1.8 Mb/s at best, and
unavailability of expansion memory space. Also, although theoretically possible, memory expansions are in
practice impossible on any of the current QL accelerators (GC and SGC). Input/output addresses needed for most
other expansions are available only on the SGC, in limited amounts.
The processing speed of PCs doubles every two years. The PC world has learned to use this to provide constant
growth of the market. The reason is simple - almost everything on the PC has been adding by ‘grafting’ new
things on it, rather than filling in empty ‘sockets’ someone has thought of before. This is true for everything from
the very first PC CPU (the 8086 is an extension of the previous 8 bit 8085), over the various PC busses, right up
to all the PC operating systems. Because adding anything clever at this point means years of work on new
* 45
It's TIME for the NEXT LEAP - (cont'd)
software able to exploit it (case in point - it took all the time up to windows 95 to introduce QDOS style
multitasking, in fact the Win95S taskbar looks suspiciously like PE buttons), the designers are reduced to using the
crudest possible method to provide performance - upping the clock rate, and similar techniques which effectively
have the same results. It's like finding ways to put more fuel into a car motor - the more you put in the faster it
goes.
However, general trends show that with the current growth rate, something radical is going to have to happen if
the rates are to keep constant, within the next 5 to 10 years. Simply put - there is going to be a fuel shortage. The
reason for this being that the current technology advances which make the speed doubling possible every two
years do not progress themselves at the same pace. We are witnessing today how even in the PC world things are
SLOWLY coming back to brains instead of brawn - multitasking has been introduced, code is shared between
programs, and computers are networked together, sharing resources. We are coming back to the QL philosophy
of doing things - something we have had for the last 12 years. On the other hand, the PC ‘dog eat dog’ market has
produced some remarkable hardware and new software ideas. WE CAN USE THIS SITUATION TO OUR
ADVANTAGE!
To take the car analogy further - 12 years ago we were given a recipe for the electric car. At the time it could just
break even with the existing gasoline technology. The general public rejected it because the electric car had odd
looking headlights, and low quality tires. Meanwhile, to make it on the market, the gasoline people developed
some incredible new high-voltage batteries, really good tires and some beautiful headlights. Interestingly enough,
they also adopted some of the very procedures which made the QL die on the market, like post-festum fixes to
the software (It might be argued that today no first release of any PC software package is really usable due to
bugs in it).
Conclusion one: New hardware able to run QDOS/SMSQ has to use standard off-the-shelf PC hardware
where possible, but without sacrificing performance to conform to the PC standards.
What does this mean in reality? In effect, this would mean that things like SIMM RAM, hard discs, CD ROM
etc. (IDE, SCSI), floppies, PC cases and power supplies, keyboards, mice and monitors should be used, simply
because their interfacing and operating philosophy is stable - they have become a standard which is unlikely to
change very soon. This is important, because with the number of people involved with QDOS/SMSQ machines,
it is unlikely that the development of the machine can follow the more hectic PC arenas, like the graphics card
industry.
Where do we draw the line - which PC product we don't use? If you carefully examine the previous paragraph,
you will see that neither of the pieces of hardware stated in it is actually truly PC specific. For instance, today all
computers use SIMM RAM in one of it's versions, and the same goes for the rest in the list. Even the Apple
computers have keyboards which are PC-like, and use IDE hard drives.
On the other hand, what can we use from the various PC expansion cards that are present on the market?
Obviously we cannot use a PC motherboard - it's main idea is to carry the PC’s CPU, which is of the wrong type.
It carries the memory, but since we have a different CPU we have to do our own ‘motherboard’ or something
similar. The PC motherboard also has an expansion bus where the other cards fit into.
To continue: Graphic cards - there are LOADS of those around. They are cheap, but new ones keep appearing at
the rate of at least one each month. The problem here is that it's painfully difficult to get any documentation on
the card hardware, so that a driver can be written for it. Also, at the rate new cards are introduced, by the time
you have a working and stable driver, your card is out of production. Also, some of the cards have problems with
their own ancestors, i.e. the need to be compatible with them. This makes the ways in which sometimes even
basic and most frequently used functions are invoked extremely strange, and in some cases downright stupid.
There is a book about VGA and SVGA programming available, it has about 800 pages. It pays off to read it just
to see how things should NOT be done.
Input-output cards are the next on the list. They are cheap, and very simple, and also quite limited due to the fact
that they have to be compatible with the BIOS in the PC, a piece of software in a ROM, which is located on the
PC motherboard. Although the hardware is not directly compatible with QDOS/SMSQ it could be used with
46
It's TIME for the NEXT LEAP - (cont'd)
special drivers. However, it would probably be simpler to make our own card, and be able to use the existing
drivers. I would say that there is no reason to sacrifice performance due to PC compatibility, as it is not an issue
here - we have to use our own drivers anyway. Furthermore, this is the part where we can use recycled bits and
pieces from existing QDOS/SMSQ systems and save ourselves the need for new drivers. Floppies, serial and
parallel ports are unlikely to change radically in the future.
Network cards go next - this is one area where there is a sort-of standardisation in the PC world, and this might
be worth exploiting. However, the chips used on such cards are available, and relatively cheap, and data for them
is easily obtainable. Furthermore, the network card circuitry is also simple, so it might be a good idea to build our
own network cards. In the long run this might be better since we can tailor them to the system - the costs of
developing the software drivers are in all probability going to be much higher than the costs of hardware
development, so it pays off to make your own hardware if this makes the software simpler.
Sound cards and similar multimedia products - the new toys of the computing world. A simple answer - not yet.
The multimedia is in complete disarray - there is no real standard (apart from some file formats), the products
come with bundled software and the manufacturers do not give any hardware data. The safest bet would be to use
a DSP (digital signal processor) and 16 bit audio, but that's a bridge to cross when we get there, especially as we
may get more benefits from the same hardware, and not only sound. As for video, for now it is probably best to
wait with any specific hardware.
This leaves us with only one completely practical board - a PC internal modem. However, this can also be bought
as an external unit and although more expensive, when you add circuitry to interface to the internal one, you get
to the same price.
Adding it all up, it seems that there are no outstanding reasons favouring the use of PC cards. This brings us to
the question of the bus system used in our new computer. Why do we use a PC bus if we cannot realistically use
the PC cards, with exception of a modem? The only PC bus which is more of an universal type is the PCI bus -
since it's not completely PC specific, we might investigate using it in our own design. Unfortunately, here we
have another problem - the risk of having the bus architecture change right beneath our feet, because of a
revision. We might implement a set of functions of the bus just to find that the next version does not use them, or
uses new ones - and even the few PCI cards we wanted to use we cannot use any more!
Consider a hypothetical situation - we have a PCI CPU board capable of running QDOS/SMSQ. Then, we would
need some sort of input/output card for it, meaning new drivers with teething troubles similar to the QXL. If we
want to stay with the old drivers, and have the added advantage of using hardware recycled from our old QL
system, we have to do our own PCI board. If we have to do our own cards, then we might as well use our own
bus, designed to our own specification. Realistically, the only advantage of PCI is that we would PROBABLY be
able to use a PCI network card and save some time and money there. But we cannot do that unless we have done
all the rest, i.e. CPU board, and all input-output, and then most users will not use a network card because they
will not have their computer in a network. The PCI CPU board is not an asset - we could easily have made a
board to work with any of the available busses, or with our own - the cost is the same. I invite everyone to prove
me wrong.
To insist on being compatible if it means wasting a year to be so, while in the same year the very thing we
wanted to be compatible with has changed so we can start all over again does not seem a good idea. It does not
reflect the way QDOS/SMSQ works. QDOS is probably the only operating system running on a small computer
which has been from the very start designed to be ‘plug-and-play’ - the new buzzword in the PC industry, and I
think this capability should not be sacrificed to keep up with a market which operates on entirely different
principles. Recent literature on PCI that I have been able to read discourages any thought that PCI style
plug-and-play can be used on the QL, in fact the specs differ even amongst different platforms using PCI like
Intel based and PowerPC based computers. It seems to me that ‘plug and pray’ would be a better fitting name,
especially in the way Microsoft understands drivers - the people writing the next version of Windows might
simply neglect writing a driver for your PCI hardware, or publishing proper documentation on how the hardware
manufacturer can write a driver - the quickest way for Microsoft to ruin the manufacturer of the said hardware.
: 47
It's TIME for the NEXT LEAP - (cont'd)
The philosophy of adding hardware to a QDOS machine is to have a driver come with the hardware. The driver
has to present the hardware to QDOS using a set of predefined functions - thus QDOS communicates with the
drivers, and so with the hardware over a ‘software interface’. This means that applications never need to know any
details of the hardware - the software interface makes it all look similar. In the case of QDOS/SMSQ the
specifications on the software interface have been stable from the very start, and I have not seen a good reason to
change them, possibly only extend them slightly. SMSQ seems to build onto the existing specs and even allows
the system software to adjust itself for disparate hardware it's going to run on. This makes it easy to build new
hardware without running into compatibility problems. On the other hand, specifications for some improvements
in the way some drivers work have never actually been published - a notable case being level 2 and 3 directory
driver specs. This is one problem which I will come back to later.
Now that there is an idea of which of-the-shelf components we want to use, there has to be a means to tie them
all together. Without going back to the PC bus discussions, let us examine what general properties we need in our
computer.
First of all, it goes without saying that we need a 32 bit architecture throughout. In the case of our machine this
only relates to hardware - since QDOS and SMSQ mun on 68000 series CPUs they have been designed with 32
bits in mind from the very start - because for the software there were 32 bits from the very start.
Do we make allowances for 64 bit architecture? The answer is certainly NO. The only useful data type which is
larger than 32 bits is a extended precision floating point number. A typical CPU executes one floating point
instruction every 400 or more integer instructions, which is also the reason why floating point coprocessors
(either separate or integrated on a CPU) do not evolve with the same speed ordinary CPUs do. The only really
beneficial thing about a 64 bit bus is that the CPU can fetch more instructions at once, or if the instructions are
not of a fixed length, achieve better instruction fetch efficiency. Fortunately, that problem is solved much better
by efficient on-chip caches than by 64 bit busses, at a much lower cost. This is the reason why fully 64 bit CPUs
have not appeared yet, nor is it likely they ever will.
Another concern is how much memory we can address. Most 32 bit CPUs have also 32 address bits, resulting in a
maximum of 4 Gb addressable memory. This usually has to include requirements of the input-output devices, but
that is a diminutive percentage. Will we ever need 4 Gb of memory? Extremely unlikely - it took us 10 years to
get from 1Mb to 8Mb, an 8-fold increase. Taking 10 years as the probable lifetime of the new machine, we take
the same 8-fold increase from the current situation, and say that we need at least 64 Mb. Further in the text I will
try to argue that even this is unlikely to ever be used up. Another RAM related fact - a CPU spends 99% of it's
time accessing RAM for various reasons. This points to a possible solution to the bus problem - we could make
the bus use standard DRAM signals and timing, adding another good trait - the need to address standard RAM is
common to all CPUs used in personal computers, making the bus practically universal - in fact it would then be
easy to make bridges from the said bus to other buses, including PCI and the like.
Conclusion two: We need a 32 bit data path architecture, with at least 64 Mb address range, able to interface
efficiently with ordinary DRAM. If a particular CPU type needs higher speeds, they have to be obtained by using
a second-level cache. Because of conclusion one, it would be a good idea to make it possible to construct bus
adapters to adapt whichever bus is used to another standard, like one of the PC busses.
Ideally, it would be best if the RAM was as ‘close’ as possible to the CPU, to account to the interfacing
peculiarity, but if we make everything in a system mimic RAM, we are not far off. 32 bit 70ns DRAM which has
already been superseded by 60ns models has a maximum throughput of 28 Mb/s without using any special
techniques (like burst access), which is some 15 times faster than the QL’s 8 bit bus. With such speed it is
unlikely that a bus system developed from a DRAM-like interface will ever represent a bottleneck for the largest
majority of peripherals. That speed is even enough for uncompressed full-standard (broadcast PAL) digital video,
while still leaving a fair amount of headroom. DRAM (and thus a DRAM-like bus) also has higher speed modes
of data access (usually called page mode access).
Which CPU do we use at a starter level? It seems to me that an ordinary 68020, such as the one used on the SGC
isa perfectly good start. It has a good turn of speed, and with a fully 32 bit interface to some graphics hardware,
48
It's TIME for the NEXT LEAP - (cont'd)
and a hard disc, it would probably grow wings. Compared to the current situation in the PC world, a 68020 might
look pathetic - but that situation does not apply to QDOS/SMSQ machines. Compatibility can be a blessing, but
if you go too far, it's a noose around your throat. If a 32 k program does the same thing as a 320 k program, the
32k one will always be more efficient, and more robust. The smaller one will also always load faster which will
make the same hard disc appear faster. The probability of spurious errors in the smaller program is lesser, simply
because there are less bits in the program that can go corrupt. Compare the size of SMSQ/E to say, Windows 3.1
kernel and one driver for each piece of hardware. Now do you understand why a 68020 seems fast?
You will probably notice that neither conclusion one nor two imply any restriction to which CPU has to be used -
any of them interface to the same peripherals and RAM, and have almost all have a version with a 32 bit external
data path. The reason for this will, I hope, become clear later in the text.
Common sense dictates that however we design our new computer, it has to be to a reasonable degree
future-proof. Having QDOS/SMSQ as the operating system takes a lot of that load off our shoulders, but the real
problem in having a future-proof machine lies in the hardware.
You don't have to be a genius to figure out that more and more processing power will be needed in the future.
Unfortunately, as I have already stated, we cannot expect clock rates of CPUs to increase much further - the
reason being laws of nature, and those are extremely difficult to overcome, to put it mildly. In order to be faster,
the manufacturers need to simultaneously reduce voltages and make the chips physically smaller. Both have a
law-of-nature limit, and even if materials were used that are better than silicon (like Gallium Arsenide, if the
technology existed) give us less than 5.5 years until technological resources for speed advances are exhausted,
using the speed doubling every two years as a template. Unfortunately, faster semiconductors are, looking at the
current situation, somewhat further away than that, and completely different approaches like optical computers or
similar are even further, possibly by decades. Possible advances which would extend the capability of the
existing technology include practical high temperature superconductors to enable efficient cooling, but such do
not exist at all yet - the ones that do operate at temperatures where all semiconductors known to man don't work
any more. Obviously, technology alone is not the answer - enter a form of multiprocessing known as superscalar
computing. The idea behind it is to try to execute several consecutive instructions at once, which is possible if
they don't affect each other's data. Some CPUs using this approach are the Intel PS, Motorola 68060, Supersparc,
MIPS R4000. Each has 2 execution units, and can execute two integer instructions at a time. In some cases other
instructions can be executed concurrently, like jumps and floating point instructions, but those do not present a
significant percentage. Future architectures are likely to integrate more execution units (3 or 4) to enable more
instructions to execute concurrently. Unfortunately, once you go over 3 execution units, they are seldom used
concurrently, simply because there are no consecutive instructions that fit the premise of not affecting each
other's data, Pegging the limit of the number of execution units to 4 gets us a speed increase which translates to
about 15 more months until resources are exhausted. Looking at this data it might occur to the average user that
there isn't much that can be done about it. Well, a bit of lateral thinking could help...
We can optimise what we do, and use intelligent peripheral units to relieve the CPU of some of it's work.
Input/output tasks are the most logical candidate, in particular graphics and communications. Using the best
techniques, providing the rest of the system is fairly optimal, we gain a somewhat overestimated 2x increase of
effective speed, meaning 2 years until we exhaust this resource. This is the simplest, and easiest way to introduce
a form of multiprocessing. In some applications this technique can offer more performance improvements, but on
a single-user machine the applications are not enough input-output intensive to expect more than the said gains.
Because all hardware intended to perform IO functions on QDOS/SMSQ machines is accessed through a
software interface, it has to conform only to the broadest hardware requirements, and does not have to be itself
compatible to any software. This makes the intelligent IO almost as easy to implement as any other.
Finally, we can exploit the concept of multiprocessing further, by having multiple CPUs instead of one
superscalar CPU - because obviously, looking at consecutive instructions is not enough. The concept of
multiprocessing is extremely broad, and almost anything can fit into it. The QDOS/SMSQ world has lived with
multitasking for a long time. Having different tasks run on different CPUs is not that far removed from
multitasking as we know it, as long as there are enough tasks to keep all the CPUs busy. Here is where the true
power of QDOS/SMSQ lies, and in my opinion it would be foolish not to exploit it.
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It's TIME for the NEXT LEAP - (cont'd)
Although we are progressing slowly, the rest of popular computing has started to catch up only in the last years.
We have a lot of time until they overtake us, and by then we might be happily computing on multiprocessing
machines. For us the next leap is easier. Multiprocessing as a principle is still a big unknown, and as such we can
set no limits as to it's potential. Having jobs work on several CPUs is only a start. ‘This is the reason why I think
it unlikely that a SMSQ machine will ever use 64 Mb of RAM - it is more likely we will have more CPUs
working concurrently with all the RAM they need for them selves before we reach the 64 Mb limit on a single
CPU.
How does this relate to the problem at hand, namely our new machine? Well:
Conclusion three: Support multiple bus masters, so that more than one CPU or other master device can take
control of the bus for any purpose. This is as far as we can gO, and this measure is designed primarily with
intelligent IO in mind. It can also support a limited amount of CPU boards (as opposed to intelligent IO boards).
‘An actual future multiprocessing machine will in all probability be very different in it's design, so it does not pay
off to guess at what it will be, or provide specific hardware resources (prejudicing what can or cannot be done). It
is better to simply provide a general resource. ‘The ability to use multiple bus masters makes it possible to transfer
data from and to peripherals without main CPU intervention - other CPUs dedicated to 10 can do the task. IO
dedicated CPUs do not have to be very powerful or expensive - for instance, a single 68008 can easily handle two
fast serial ports, a parallel port, a keyboard and a mouse, in parallel with the tasks of the main CPU. Upping the
clock a little or using a 68000 makes it possible to do background operations on a floppy. All that with only a
minimal degradation on the main CPU performance, about 6 to 8%. Things like port buffering, or even on-line
compression of data are easily added by additional programming for the 10 CPU - the program can simply be
uploaded in the IO CPU's memory. For an idea on how this can work you need to look no further than the new
superHermes.
The reason why the actual CPUs being used are not specified should now be apparent - this will depend on what
they are used for. Once multimastering is involved, we might use different CPUs to provide intelligent peripheral
interfacing, emulation of other computers, or multiprocessing, either with several identical or several different
CPUs. In effect, we use the CPU that fits the particular job. We can even use more than one CPU on a single
board, if it suits the purpose.
At this point you might be wondering how can a machine with so much new potential be made to use as many
parts from your old system as possible. First of all, recycling old parts has to be handled correctly - we do not use
parts which are counter-productive for the new design. For instance, if you look at a Goldcard, you will notice
that several chips on it are socketed. Since we cannot use the Goldcard as such, we might consider using the
socketed chips from it. Looking closely, you will find that the 68HC000 CPU, the ROM chip, the RAM chips,
the floppy controller and the real time clock (RTC) chip are socketed. The RAM can certainly be used, and the
floppy controller. The RTC is also reusable - time as we measure it will not change in the future, so no need to
re-invent the wheel. The EPROM is easily recyclable - we will certainly need at least one in the system. With the
GC retailing for 100 Pounds, only recycling the RAM saves 50 Pounds, at least. Similar things are possible with
the SGC, and the same applies for most other boards with socketed VLSI, RAM or reprogrammable chips. An
added advantage - we are using peripheral chips which use existing driver software, so we basically only need to
adjust the address at which they are found. Therefore:
Conclusion four: Wherever possible recycle components from older parts of the system, but do not
compromise on the previous three conclusions to aid recycling.
In some cases, the practical applications of conclusion four might be as simple as providing sockets for GC/SGC
RAM along with SIMM sockets.
Once we have all this set-up, the question is in what form we put it all together, speaking from the mechanical
standpoint. Obviously, we have settled for a PC style case, and a PC power supply. Both of those are relatively
easy to accommodate in the design.
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It's TIME for the NEXT LEAP - (cont'd)
Simply speaking about a bus means that there is going to be one, and some slots on it to plug cards into them.
The system is therefore modular, but even here there are several possibilities - do we use a motherboard with
expansion slots, or a simple backplane with slots to carry boards. If we use a motherboard, which parts of the
system do we integrate onto such a motherboard, and which do we expect to have on plug-in boards? Do we have
memory integrated on the same board with the CPU, or as a separate module? Personally, I would go with a
backplane which carries a CPU board or boards, which have on them RAM local to the said CPU, and additional
RAM expansion sockets. There would be an additional input-output board capable of interfacing to standard
devices, which are unlikely to change much - like floppies, serial ports, parallel ports, a keyboard and a mouse.
Ideally, this board should have it's own CPU, which by no means has to be a 32 bit one - it simply has to provide
enough power for simple operations with the said peripherals. The CPU can also be an optional component,
possibly with some RAM and ROM on the side. Certainly there would have to be a graphics card of some sort -
here the options are plentiful, but one is almost essential - 256 colours, resolution comparable with what can be
obtained using a QXL. However, this is only my opinion - so any comment is welcome. For now, we can state:
Conclusion five: The hardware should be modular from the very start to allow for easy expansion. We do not
want to face the same problems as when expanding the original QL.
Now that the underlying ideas of a new hardware platform are outlined, we come to the next big problem - the
software.
Realistically speaking, it would not be a big problem to use only a slightly modified SMSQ/E for the Goldcard to
bring the new hardware to life - but the benefits of such a system, while being a good start, are simply not
enough. OK, the machine would be much faster at some tasks, and you could easily add more memory - but what
about all the added potential? Simply put - we need people to write new software that extends the machine's
capability. This means anything from new drivers, to new applications. The hardware can be as good as it likes,
but without the drivers it will never work. Then, having a uniform way of accessing the new hardware inevitably
creates new application potentials - consider, for instance, how many new applications you can think of on
SMSOQ if the hardware supported 256 colours and had the proper drivers for it?
The QDOS/SMSQ environment is such that programming for it was never difficult. However, more recent
advancements have changed this situation, because of one simple reason - lack of adequate documentation.
Did you know that the EE (Extended environment - i.e. what is now the /E part of SMSQ/E) supports 16 bit
colour, meaning up to 65536 colours? I challenge the well versed pointer environment programmers to find out
where this fact is documented. To continue further - do you know how to write a driver for a pointing device, or a
network driver? What functions a level 2 or 3 driver has to implement? Why are filenames limited to 36
characters?
With all this a single fact should be remembered - the users of QDOS/SMSQ are a lot different than the users of
say, Windows. People who have stayed faithful to QDOS/SMSQ have certainly not done so because of the
flashiness of applications programs. We would be perfectly safe in maintaining that the QDOS/SMSQ
community has amongst it's users an inordinately high percentage of people who at least have a fair idea about
programming - we might also say that almost all of us users had to recourse to some programming, if nothing
else to write a boot program. It's certainly counter-productive to reduce the available programmer pool by not
having proper documentation.
Looking at the public domain software scene, it's clear that there are programmers willing to push walls in their
quest for better software. The biggest problem is when this results in something new, something which has not
been seen before. In a way, the documentation should not only be there as a reference for the current state of the
operating system, but also have some guidelines to how the OS has come to such a state, and how it should be
expanded, so that people don't end up pushing the same wall from different directions, so to say.
Another thing I found lacking in my own roaming through the available documentation is no mention of
underlying ideas and a lack of examples. For instance, it took me three days to find out how to write a simple
serial driver, but once I got the idea, I realised I had never seen the matter of drivers presented in a more concise
: 51
It's TIME for the NEXT LEAP - (cont'd)
and elegant way - the code was finished and working in a matter of hours. This made the initial disappointment
with the documentation even worse. One area where this is very damaging is with concepts which are new and
fairly universal - like Things. The problem here is in part psychological - if you have something which can be
used for almost anything, it will end up being used for nothing if you don't offer several examples for it's use.
This is because not everyone has the power to envision how a concept can be used to get real world results. I can
offer you an example - try to imagine yourself in ancient Rome, where they do maths using Roman numerals.
Now try introducing the idea of Arabic numerals (easy to read and calculate with) to a Roman numeral world,
without examples showing why they are better.
Conclusion six: We urgently need to fill some serious gaps in the available reference documentation on
QDOS/SMSQ(/E). Tings that need to be done are showing the basic ideas used to implement it's capability,
updating documentation to the current state of the OS, adding some loose guidelines for the future-all with
examples.
Not having this issue addressed will inevitably lead to ‘it works on the JS ROM! syndrome, i.e. backward
compatibility which serves no purpose. This is a result of programmers having to use partial disassembles to see
how things work.
Another analogy:
Idea: get from A to B.
Program: use a car to get from A to B.
Conclusions of a programmer that disassembled the program: To get from A to B we need a car. Therefore
include car in all future programs that need to get from somewhere to somewhere else.
Conclusions of a programmer that knows the idea: Look what is available to get us from A to B. Use it. This will
work even if Star Trek matter transporters are found to be available, not only cars.
Having to 'Use a JS ROM’ because of failed assumptions or incomplete documentation is in my opinion utterly
stupid (I'm sorry if someone finds this insulting). If that's the way things should work, cars would today be
compatible with being towed around by cattle. The point of all this: A QDOS/SMSQ machine is NOT an IBM
PC or compatible, so should not fall pray to the same problems.
I may be immodest, but I think that with every release of an OS there should be a corresponding release of the
key documentation, at least in the form of an addendum to the existing documentation. Ideally, I would like a
reference manual to have come with every machine - say on a CD. It is true that writing such reference manuals
does not generate much profit, but without them no-one knows how to use a product to get all it's advantages - so
then why buy the product? No products bought - no profit. It's as simple as that.
Another problem which is closely related is that there are people who can write wonderful system software.
Then, there are people who can write wonderful manuals. It seems to be a natural law that those two groups
seldom overlap.
At one of the recent meetings a friend of mine asked Jochen Merz where he got the data on how to implement
something in one of his programs - and the answer was 'I phoned up Tony Tebby’. Well, not everyone can phone
up Tony Tebby, he’s not that easy to reach, and by all rights he should not be, otherwise he'd go mad trying to
answer everyone's requests. Obviously this is not the way to do things. There must be people around who
understand enough of QDOS/SMSQ at least to ask the proper questions to get to the concepts behind ways
QDOS/SMSQ does things, and are also able to write down this knowledge in a form understandable to a wide
audience.
Once all the previous conclusions are satisfied, there is a whole lot we can do with our new machine. But, as I
said, there are many ways something can be done, and all of them are not equally good, or with equal forethought
about the future, the sore point here being the extensions to the OS. QDOS/SMSQ is extremely extendible, so
there are many possibilities. To name only a few:
52
It's TIME for the NEXT LEAP - (cont'd)
We could have a better looking user interface. The Pointer Environment (PE) is a part of QDOS/SMSQ system
software - although it may look restricting to some programmers (documentation problem again, in my opinion),
it offers a much larger benefit of offering a uniform way of doing things amongst different programs. Although
there is no ‘desktop’ or similar construct, the Hotkey system enables the user to tailored the system, to the specific
ways the user does things with it. The philosophy is excellent (Microsoft is just catching up with it with
Windows 95) but one could still build onto the existing foundations. For instance, we could add the ability to
have icons in buttons (I would not be surprised if that's already in there - DOCUMENTATION!!!) or multiple
button frames called up or disposed off by buttons. One thing you might be surprised at - I think the number of
colours for the user interface (that being the windows borders, the menus, the buttons and the sprites) is perfectly
adequate - 4 are enough, but I'd like to choose WHICH four, if more are available. I find it best if the application
handles extra colour capability, if it needs it. As far as colour and applications go, I'm almost afraid to think what
would happen if the QL had 256 colour video - using Carlos Delhez’ UNGIF might give you some ideas!
But how about other system software? Say drivers for CD ROM? A time ago I submitted a rather long text on
something I called 'Meta-drivers' to be circulated on the BBS network. The concept behind it is to enable easy
adding of new devices which have some similarity with existing ones, or common ancestry, but have never been
used on QDOS/SMSQ before. It also solves other device-related problems, amongst others, remote device access
using networking. Other people thought about more ideas, for instance virtual windows, floating point
coprocessor support and hardware memory protection. I'm sure there are more around.
Without trying to form a committee (the very idea sounds absurd applied to the QL community) we would need
something (someone?) to throw the ideas at. One obvious choice is Tony Tebby, but as I said, he is only one man
and has only so much time, even if he was willing to assume such a role.
Conclusion seven: We need a way to transfer ideas as to the growth of the new platform. Any suggestions
on solving this problem are highly welcome.
Developing a new computing platform intended to replace an old one should not be a one-sided decision, or a
one-sided process. Ultimately, it will be the users who will decide if they like a new product, but I think it is
essential that as much of the QL community play a role in the making of a new machine as possible. With all that
was said, it should be obvious that this project is certainly not a short-term one, but rather an long-term, on-going
one.
Conclusion eight:
YOUR help is needed in making this a reality.
The idea of a new QDOS/SMSQ platform has struck a resounding bell at QUBBESoft PD, so the first step
towards making a new platform has in a way already been made.
Certainly, the costs of development of a new computer are high, so we would like co-operation with other QL
traders to produce parts of the system. It could be argued that there can never be enough money for research and
development, but we would rather have feedback from the current QL users!
Do you think all this is a good idea? Do you have your own ideas, suggestions or comments? We would like to
hear from you! We need help in preparing the relevant reference documentation, so that other people can develop
their own hardware and software for the new machine.
But that's not all - the real commodity is information - there is no need to re-invent the wheel, and it would be
absurd and pretentious to think that only our solutions are the good ones. There are many concepts we can safely
borrow from other computers, and we need any suggestions you can think of, or even better, documentation on
the said concepts, or even documentation in form of standards and specifications. Even hardware documentation
is highly welcome, as I said, it's often difficult to obtain.
It is our intention to have this project a matter of discussion for a limited time, the deadline we're thinking of is
53
2
It's TIME for the NEXT LEAP - (cont'd)
by December Ist or thereabouts. We intend to use any information we can come up with to see whether such a
project is feasible and if it is, what the actual specs will be. The more feedback we get from you, the more data
we will have, and we hope that if you, the users and traders find this idea appealing, this data will help us all
build the machine we want.
Contact: Zeljko Nastasic,
Augusta Senoe 2, 41211 Zapresic, Croatia
Tel/Fax ++385 1 173005
FIDONET 2:252/67, or use the International QL echo area on the net.
or:
QUBBESoft PD (Ron Dunnett),
38 Brunwin Road, Rayne, Braintree, Essex, CM7 SBU, UK
Tel: ++44 (0)1376 347852, Fax: ++44 (0)1376 331267
= a
OQBOX— USA
810-254-9878
Now running with QUBIPE and a 212 Mbyte hard drive!
We have added the following new message areas:
QL BRSIC, Hardware, Stiaclatr fC, and small ads frou
the UK and USR. Plus we stilt have International at,
Mcrnerva, Qvanta, and QBox Sysop areas.
Féle ereas have been rearranged and expanded.
ae GBox-USR will be at the 3rd Ranval North Rumerican aa
QL Show, June, 1995, tn Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
Stag in teuch with Sinclair users areu .
BBS is available 2¢ hours a dag. 300 thru 14400 bps.
MIRACLE SYSTEMS
QL GOLD CARD
Recycled Gold Card £100 inc. (£90 outside EU)
This is the expansion that has been revolutionising the QL. It is very easy to fit , it simply
plugs into the expansion port at the left hand of the QL, and once fitted it will instantly
increase the execution speed of the QL by about 4 times due to the presence of a 16MHz
68000 on board. There is 2M of fast 16 bit RAM of which QDOS sees a contiguous
1920K. The remainder is used for shadowing the QL’s ROM and display memory and for
the GOLD CARD'’s own code.
There is a disk interface which can access 3 mechanisms (4 with the DISK ADAPTER)
of three different densities, DD (double density, 720K), HD (high density, 1.44M) and
ED (extra high density, 3.2M) in any mix. The disk interface connector is the same type
that was fitted to the Trump Card so most QL compatible disk drives can be used.
Please note: that DD drives still give a capacity of 720K per diskette.
Our DUAL ED DISK DRIVE allows the GOLD CARD to access DD,
HD and ED diskettes.
Another feature is the battery backed clock. When the QL is switched on the contents of
the clock are copied into the QL’s clock so that the time and date are correct. The
firmware in the ROM gives the GOLD CARD all the functionality of the Trump Card
like TOOLKIT II and there is a sub-directory system for floppy and RAM disks.
Physically the GOLD CARD is about half the size of the TRUMP CARD and so fits
almost all within the QL. Its current consumption is well under allowable maximum so no
special power supply is required. The GOLD CARD comes with a 14 day money back
guarantee and a | year warranty.
MIRACLE SYSTEMS
SUPER GOLD CARD
"The Pathway ‘to Future QL Development"
Briefly...
* 3 Times Faster
* 68020 processor
* 4M bytes of RAM
* CENTRONICS port
* Supports 4 Disk Drives
* 2 Year warranty
What is it ?
The SUPER GOLD CARD is the first major revision of our highly successful Gold Card. We have replaced the 68000
processor with the 68020 so programs run about 3 times faster and have expanded the memory to 4M bytes. Additional
improvments include a fast CENTRONICS printer port, 2 double disk drive ports, virtually crash-proof clock and a socket
to optionally connect 5V. We also supply a 3 meter Centronics priater cable at no additional cost.
The deal...
£275 including VAT - (£240 outside EU)
(Includes postage, a 14 day money back guarantee and a 2 year warranty.)
or you can send us your GOLD CARD and:
£175 including VAT - (£150 outside EU)
You can also deduct a further £15 for a returned QL CENTRONICS and/or £10 for a DISK ADAPTER.
We are happy to accept payment by sterling cheque made payable to "MIRACLE SYSTEMS", or by quoting your
MastesnayreNen are credit card number and expiry date (SWITCH card holders please also quote issue
Recycled Items...
Gold Card £100 (outside EU £90) QL Centronics £ 15 Disk Adapter £ 10
(Recycled items carry a 1 year warranty.)
TELEPHONE/FAX: (01454) 883 602
MIRACLE SYSTEMS LTD - 20 Mow Barton, Yate, Bristol, BS17 SNF, UK
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